Cleaner air and more sustainable cities

The city of Huhhot in Inner Mongolia, China, is undergoing an industrial and energy transformation to meet national carbon targets, and Alfa Laval will provide heat exchangers for a new sustainable district heating network, replacing an old coal-fired system. This will enable a cleaner and more efficient energy system, heating up to 910,000 homes. It is scheduled for completion by 2028, preventing the burning of 1.13 million tons of coal annually.

In 2018, China launched the three-year "China Blue Sky" plan, with the goal of improving air quality in the country. While this plan has concluded, the government continues to initiate projects to reduce emissions from coal-fired boilers and air pollutants, aiming to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.

One such project is taking place in Inner Mongolia's capital, Huhhot. The region must undergo changes to its industrial structure and energy mix to meet national carbon targets.

There are two potential approaches to reducing carbon intensity. The first involves cutting energy intensity by adjusting the industrial structure to reduce energy consumption. The second approach focuses on improving the energy structure by replacing fossil fuel sources with alternatives. Alfa Laval is normally active in both areas, but in this case the company will be a part of a newer more energy efficient heating infrastructure. 

By replacing coal-fired boilers with district heating that utilizes waste heat from a power station located outside the city, emissions will be dramatically reduced. The power station will supply hot water to the district heating network, providing the city with a more sustainable heating solution. Alfa Laval's heat exchangers will play a crucial role in transferring the energy produced by the power station into hot water distributed throughout the district heating network. This will enable a cleaner and more efficient energy system to heat up to 910,000 homes. The system is expected to be operational by 2028.

Not the first time

Alfa Laval has previously implemented similar systems in China, such as the district heating network in the city of Taiyuan, which was part of the China Blue Sky plan and is one of the world's largest central heating facilities. In Taiyuan switching from coal-fired heating to district heating i reduced the city's carbon dioxide emissions by 2.5 million tonnes per year. Additionally, it cut sulphur dioxide emissions by 4,000 tonnes and dust emissions by 2,000 tonnes.

For more information please contact: 
Eva Schiller
PR Manager, Alfa Laval
Tel: + 46 46 36 71 01
Mobile: +46 709 38 71 01

This is Alfa Laval

Alfa Laval is a world leader in heat transfer, centrifugal separation and fluid handling, and is active in the areas of Energy, Marine, and Food & Water, offering its expertise, products, and service to a wide range of industries in some 100 countries. The company is committed to optimizing processes, creating responsible growth, and driving progress to support customers in achieving their business goals and sustainability targets.

Alfa Laval’s innovative technologies are dedicated to purifying, refining, and reusing materials, promoting more responsible use of natural resources. They contribute to improved energy efficiency and heat recovery, better water treatment, and reduced emissions. Thereby, Alfa Laval is not only accelerating success for its customers, but also for people and the planet. Making the world better, every day.

Alfa Laval has 20,300 employees. Annual sales in 2022 were SEK 52.1 billion (approx. EUR 4.9 billion). The company is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm.

Alfa Laval has the target of becoming carbon neutral by 2030, and thereby aims to eliminate emissions from products, raw material extraction to end-of-life. In addition to incorporating fossil-free steel in the heat exchanger, Alfa Laval is now also implementing recycled carbon black in the gaskets. Using recycled carbon black results in up to 5 percent reduced CO₂ emissions on a complete unit compared with conventional gaskets.               

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