Mszczonow (pop. 12 000), is located in the centre of Poland, 40 km west of Warszawa and it is one of the most dynamically developing municipalities in the country. Both local administration and inhabitants are open for new challenges and opportunities and benefited already from various national initiatives, EU-programs and other support sources.
Geothermal energy is a main contributor making Mszczonow's economics competitive today and forming a solid ground for future sustainable development prospects. Multi-purpose use of geothermal energy is based on thermal water produced by a single well. Water temperatures are around 40 °C with low mineralization values of approx 0,5 g/l. The well was drilled for oil and gas exploration in 1970, got reconstructed in 1990 and adopted for geothermal water production for the first time in the country. Geothermal applications form the base of the Mszczonow Therms geothermal recreation centre, In addition to various space heating installations the thermal water is also provided for drinking purposes after cooling since 1998.
The geothermal investment in Mszczonow is a large-scale enterprise intended to utilise water derived from hot underground springs for heating purposes. The geothermal-based heating plant located at Sienkiewicza str. replaces three coal-fuelled boiler houses, which operated until recently discharging annually 15 tons of nitrogen compounds, 60 tons of sulphur compounds, 9700 tons of CO2 and 145 tons of dust to the atmosphere.
Upon application of geothermal heating complemented by an additional gas system - discharge of dust and sulphur compounds have been ceased, quantity of nitrogen compounds dropped down to one ton per annum and four times less carbon dioxide is now being discharged than before. These figures speak for themselves and promoting hot springs exploitation for Mszczonow. The total cost of the investment was close to 10 million PLN and was funded and executed by Geotermia Mazowiecka. The municipality of Mszczonow is a shareholder in the company and owns one third of its stocks.
The 42°C geothermal waters in the area extracted from the depth of 1700 meters are able to effectively heat Mszczonow until the temperature falls below -5°C, then the system needs to be supported by natural gas. The local geothermal plant operates with fresh water, which is a rare exception. There is only one more similar installation in Europe operating in Erding, Germany.
Fore more information on local GeoCom activities in Polish, please contact:
Ms. Jadwiga Barbulant
Email: skarbnik_at_mszczonow.pl