La Rochelle

Context

Water Horizon is a Toulouse-based deeptech start-up founded in 2017. With its proprietary thermochemical technologies, Water Horizon aims to become a major player in the decarbonization of industry. WH supports manufacturers in their energy transition across several verticals: waste heat recovery, heat storage and transport, and renewable cooling production.

With its mature technologies, WH transforms the landscape into an energy-positive territory.

PARTIES INVOLVED

City of La Rochelle

La Rochelle Waste-to-Energy Plant

La Rochelle Fishing Port

PARTNERS

FOSELEV

BUDGET

TOTAL COST:

5 million euros

Financing:

Water Horizon

BPI

KEY NUMBERS

1,400 tons of CO2 avoided per year

→ 2 thermal batteries of 1 MW

4 GWh of energy delivered annually

DESCRIPTION

With its ambition to reduce its carbon emissions by 30% by 2030, the collaboration between waste heat producers and consumers represents a real opportunity for the La Rochelle region.

The La Rochelle Waste-to-Energy Plant is a treatment center for waste from local authorities and industrialists.

The facility processes 65,000 tons of waste annually, producing electricity and heat.

A significant amount of this heat is recovered through the district heating network in the Mireuil and Port-Neuf districts, as well as the nearby Rhodia factory. However, recovery is limited, and a large amount of heat is still lost and released into the atmosphere.

Installed at Chef de Baie since 1994, the fishing port located a few kilometers from the incinerator unloads an average of 2,000 tons of fish on the quays per year. This intense activity requires a significant need for refrigeration for the preservation of seafood. This cold is currently produced by energy-intensive installations using refrigerants with a high environmental impact.

With its «Move Heat to Cold» (MH2C) mobile thermal battery technology, Water Horizon will distribute renewable positive cooling from the waste heat of the incinerator.

The MH2C battery is charged by the heat from the incinerator. Once the battery is full, it is taken to the Chef de Baie port to distribute the cold. To ensure continuity of service for the fishing port, this project will include two batteries.

IMPACT

UVE of La Rochelle

Better image

Reduced environmental impact

Upgrade and continuous innovation to meet changing regulations

Port Officer of the Bay

→ Equipment renewal

→ Lower operating and maintenance costs

Reduction of GHG emissions

Temperature management (accuracy, stability) to ensure the quality and safety of stored products

routing

TECHNOLOGY

For the past 7 years, WATER HORIZON has developed unique skills and technical expertise in waste heat recovery and renewable cooling production.

In Europe, industrial waste heat represents the equivalent of 100 nuclear reactors.

It is on the basis of this significant observation that Water Horizon has developed its Move Heat To Cold (MH2C) technology: recovering waste heat, storing it, transporting it, and distributing it to a distant consumer in the form of renewable cooling.

The MH2C battery recovers and values waste heat between 100°C and 200°C to redistribute it as heat but mainly as cold down to -10°C.

Water Horizon handles everything! Whether you're a producer or a consumer of waste heat, we'll find your partner, size the project, finance it, and operate it.