Three heat pumps handle drying via exhaust air waste heat, while digital twin and automated guided vehicles cut energy use further. Roll-outs are planned to at least five other plants across three countries.
Project overview
Lead: Wienerberger AG
Country: Austria
Sector: Construction Materials (Electric kiln, HTHP drying, on-site solar PV, digital twin)
Stage: Post-FID / operational
Financing: Corporate investment (€30M) and NEFI / Austrian Climate and Energy Fund grant
Success factors & impact
Four key enablers make the Wienerberger GreenBricks model viable at scale:
01. Price visibility
- Certified, contracted hydropower guarantees 100% renewable electricity for the electric kiln
- On-site solar PV reduces grid dependency and further lowers operating costs, improving long-term competitiveness
02. Infrastructure readiness
- Electric kiln, HTHP drying stack and on-site solar PV cut emissions more than any individual technology
- Waste heat from the kiln is captured by heat pumps for drying, creating an integrated circular energy loop within the plant
03. Flexible systems & economics
- EU DryFiciency HTHP demonstrator (with AIT) de-risked the drying electrification concept before the €30M full-plant investment was committed
- NEFI model (industry + research institutions) offers replicable funding and co-development template
04. Risk sharing & capital models
- Consistent national and EU-level policy signals (carbon pricing, industrial decarbonisation targets) are essential in justifying roll-out across further sites
- Public grants de-risk first-of-a-kind investments, enabling Wienerberger to commit €30M of capital
System-level value
- Reduces industrial grid peak demand by integrating on-site renewables and waste-heat recovery
- Optimises capital efficiency via the NEFI co-creation model and public grants to de-risk private investment
- With plans to roll out to at least five more plants, establishes a replicable blueprint for the entire ceramics and heavy clay sector
Key metrics
- 7,340 tCO₂/year avoided (90% CO₂ reduction)
- 30% energy consumption reduction
- 270 t/day production capacity; 100,000 t/year
HTHP: High-Temperature Heat Pumps
Source: Wienerberger