This article is translated automatically.
LAVA ENERGY (LAVA), an expert in economic decarbonization, is taking over the complete modernization of the heat supply in Stuttgart's Laihle site. The aim is to convert the quarter with 762 residential units in 14 buildings, a former church and the Laihle shopping centre to a future-proof, climate-friendly and at the same time economical heat supply.
LAVA is responsible for the planning, financing, implementation and operation of the plant and will also comprehensively modernise the local heating network in the future. The clients are the 16 condominium owners' associations involved in the heating centre, which have joined forces in the Heizzentrale GbR.
The new heating concept combines several efficient and renewable technologies: pellet boiler, combined heat and power generation, heat pump and a gas peak-load boiler. The share of renewable energies is at least 75%. Thanks to the intelligent combination of combined heat and power plant, biomass and environmental heat, the new heat generation plant is expected to achieve a CO₂ reduction of 78% compared to the previous system. In the future, LAVA will increase the renewable share to up to 100% and thus meet the legal requirements from 2045. Thanks to this configuration, the project meets the funding criteria of the "Federal Funding for Efficient Heating Networks" (BEW). The concept was developed in close cooperation with the Zeeh, Schreyer planning office, which is significantly involved in the technical plant planning and design, and Gebrüder Benzinger GmbH, which is responsible for the implementation of the energy centre.
The energy concept combines short-term measures that ensure the supply of users at all times with a consistent path to decarbonization: In the first project phase, which started in autumn 2025, the existing plants will be technically revised and their operation will then be monitored by LAVA. In addition, new gas boilers and a gas-powered combined heat and power plant (CHP) are being planned, which will ensure a continuous supply of energy. In a second step, a large heat pump and a pellet plant with its own warehouse will be integrated.
"The energy-efficient transformation of the Laihle site is an example of how the heating transition is not only decided in new buildings, but above all in existing buildings: economically viable, technologically reliable and without a financial burden on the owners," says Dr.-Ing. Roland Kopetzky, Technical Managing Director of LAVA.
The administrator of Heizzentrale Laihle GmbH & Co. eGbR, Dieter Kuhn Immobilienservice GmbH, represented by Ute Hienerwadel, adds: "With LAVA, we are gaining a partner who offers planning, financing and operation from a single source, so that the energy transformation succeeds smoothly."
With the economic decarbonisation of the Laihle site, LAVA is making a significant contribution to the regional heating transition in Stuttgart and creating a model project that combines economic efficiency, sustainability and social responsibility in an exemplary manner.
