Energy-efficient use of the waste heat from TU Dresden’s high-performance computer

Press release Staatsbetrieb Sächsisches Immobilien- und Baumanagement (SIB)

Today, 6th April 2023, Saxon Real Estate and Construction Management (Staatsbetrieb Sächsisches Immobilien- und Baumanagement – SIB) and SachsenEnergie finalized the contractual basis for the sustainable use of waste heat from TU Dresden's high-performance computer at ZIH. In the future, surplus waste heat will be processed by three heat pumps so that it can be used in SachsenEnergie's district heating network.

Oliver Gaber, Commercial Director of SIB said, “The agreement on the use of waste heat is an important step towards improving energy efficiency and a clear signal for more sustainability. We are thus doing business responsibly and also delivering an innovative and sustainable project for the Free State of Saxony.”

Dr. Axel Cunow, of SachsenEnergie’s Executive Board, commented, “This project marks an exceptionally groundbreaking step towards the decarbonization of the City of Dresden and the heating transition. By using waste heat from the high-performance computer, we can produce up to 24,000 megawatt hours of green heating and theoretically supply an average of 3,700 homes in Dresden with heating. At the same time, we will avoid about 2,700 tons of CO₂ that would otherwise have been produced through the generation of district heating. This project complements the philosophy of SachsenEnergie and is a logical next step for the company as a shaper and facilitator of the energy transition.”

Prof. Wolfgang E. Nagel, Director of the Center for Information Services, added, “With this investment and strategic collaboration between SachsenEnergie, the Free State of Saxony and TU Dresden, we are creating a synergetic infrastructure for the energy-efficient reuse of very large amounts of heat – generated by high-performance computing. This is exemplary in terms of environmental policy and forward-thinking in its sustainability.”

To use the surplus heat from the Computer Center of the Lehmann Center (LZR) sustainably, a technical facility with heat pumps will be constructed to the west of it, in which the warmth of the waste heat from the computing center will be raised to that of district heating level. This means that the cooling of surplus heat can be avoided – especially in the summer months – and the waste heat can be put to good use in the network. In the winter months, some of the generated warmth is already used to heat surrounding university buildings and it will be used increasingly in the future. By feeding this surplus heat into the district heating system, 2,700 tons of CO₂ are avoided that would otherwise have been generated in producing district heating. 

The technical facility with heat pumps will be constructed by the Free State of Saxony. The total costs for the facility, including connections, is around EUR 1.6 million. The construction measure is partly financed by tax revenue on the basis of the budget adopted by the Saxon Parliament. SachsenEnergie, the future user of the building, will provide technical equipment. This begins with the introduction of medium voltage, district heating, and local heating methods and includes all installations within the building. SachsenEnergie will invest around EUR 3.2 million in the facility – with financial support from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action is part of the National Climate Protection Initiative.

Planning for the technical facility is currently underway. Construction is due to take place from mid-2023 to the end of 2023. The building will be fitted with heat pumps and trial operation will begin in 2024. At the end of 2024/the beginning of 2025, the facility will begin operations.

Contact at ZIH: Dr. Daniel Hackenberg

Contact at SIB:
Alwin-Rainer Zipfl
Tel.: +49 351 564 97200
Alwin-Rainer.Zipfl@ sib.smf.sachsen.de