The Heat is On: Revealing the World’s Largest Mega Heat Pumps

If you’re a fan of commercial or residential heat pumps, wait till you see these massive district heating heat pump projects!

Large district heating heat pumps bring a massive advantage to the table (among others) – adoption in scale.

With these projects serving tens of thousands of households, the scale these projects bring to heat pump adoption is unprecedented.

Another surprise is that they have been at it for much longer than most of us would guess. The first known instance of large heat pumps being used in district heating systems occurred in 1942 in Switzerland and used three units with a combined heat capacity output of 5.9 MW.

Here we go!

Nr 7: Drammen, Norway

This is an ammonia refrigerant heat pump with a capacity of 14 MW heats water up to 90°C using local fjord water. This system has an annual net output of 67 GWh, significantly aiding in carbon savings for the city. It was built in 2011 by Star Refrigeration.

Nr 6: Mannheim, Germany

A newer installation uses river water as its heat source, operating at a capacity of 20 MW. This heat pump supplies heating to around 3,500 households, contributing to a reduction of 10,000 tons of CO2 emissions. It was built in 2023 by Siemens.

Nr 5: Helsinki, Finland

This plant features an air-to-water heat pump (possibly the largest A2W HP in the world!) with a capacity ranging from 20 to 33 MW, capable of operating in temperatures as low as -20°C. It provides approximately 200 GWh of heat annually to 30,000 homes, while also reducing CO2 emissions by 26,000 tons per year. This system is set to begin production in 2024 and is being developed by MAN Energy Solutions.

Nr 4: Paris, France

A geothermal energy system using an aquifer deposit operates at a capacity of 36 MW. This installation supplies heat to about 30,000 homes, delivering around 220 GWh annually. Built in 2017 by Sygeo and Semhach.

Nr 3: Esbjerg, Denmark

A 60 MW heat pump harnesses supercritical CO2 to extract heat from the Wadden Sea. This system supplies approximately 280,000 MWh of heat annually, benefiting about 100,000 local residents. It was developed by MAN Energy Solutions.

Nr 2: Gothenburg, Sweden

Another significant heat pump operates at a capacity of 160 MW, utilizing wastewater from a treatment plant. This system employs four heat pumps to provide heating for 15,000 homes. Plans are in place to replace two smaller units with a new 50 MW unit. This facility was built in 1983 and is managed by Göteborg Energi AB, with the replacement unit scheduled for 2026 to be built by Strabag.

Nr 1: Stockholm, Sweden

Stockholm is home to the largest heat pump, boasting a capacity of 225 MW. This impressive installation harnesses wastewater from the Henriksdals water treatment plant. It produces approximately 1.2 TWh of heat annually, enough to supply around 95,000 two-bedroom apartments. What is even more impressive is that it was built in 1986. It is managed by Exergi.

Bonus insight: Which regions do you think are leading the large-scale heat pump revolution?

From a varied mix of data it seems that (in rough terms):

-            Sweden: Has 120+ large scale heat pump installations,

-            Denmark has more than 31+

-            Norway has several (unknown number)

-            Finland has 2+

-            Italy has 2+

There are many more installations of smaller sizes in China, the US and perhaps elsewhere too.

At TermoPlus we don’t build systems of this magnitude, we focus on commercial and residential heat pumps. But I can certainly appreciate the economics and value of shifting large numbers of households over to any size of super-efficient and environmentally friendly heat pumps!

This list isn't exhaustive - and may not even be entirely accurate. Do you know of any mega heat pumps worth adding to it?

Stay cool and toasty! 😎👌🔥 

* Data on these plants varies significantly, so there are bound to be a few errors and omissions.