On Friday 3 February, Mette Lyng Hansen, CEO of Gottlieb Paludan Architects, attended the German Design Award ceremony in Frankfurt with Jens Stein from HOFOR, Director of Amagerværket. Together, they received one of the world's most prestigious design awards for the spectacular design of of BIO4, Copenhagen’s new biomass-fuelled CHP plant.

Under the project name Plant Power, the design was developed to reflect the transition from fossil fuels to more sustainable sources of energy. Trees and wood are principal, distinguishing elements of the architectural design, telling the story about the origins of the biomass that fuels the plant and visualisingCopenhagen’s plan to become the world’s first CO2-neutral capital. The design was developed for HOFOR in collaboration with Speirs Major, LYTT and MOE.

The German Design Awards, established in 2012, are the premium award of the German Design Council. With its worldwide spectrum and international appeal, it is one of the most prestigious awards in the design landscape across all industries. The »Gold« distinction of the German Design Awards is the highest distinction, awarded for excellent, comprehensive and innovative design work. BIO4 is one among 3 »Gold« recipients in this year’s Excellent Architecture category.

Photo: Allan Toft

According to the jury: “Copenhagen has set itself the ambitious goal of becoming the world's first carbon-neutral capital by 2025. This includes, above all, transitioning away from coal-fired power to sustainable regenerative energies – a disruptive transformation that the local energy supplier HOFOR is making visible from afar with an unusual façade cladding for its district heating plant. Vertically arranged tree trunks create a six-metre-deep curtain enveloping the entire building whose sculptural aesthetics give the impression of a dense forest and thus refer to the use of wood chips as biomass. This is already impressive by day and particularly atmospheric at night as the structure is additionally illuminated by a fascinating greenish light. This both amazing and inspiring installation clearly shows that Copenhagen is serious about its climate goals”. 

Our project will be presented at the winning exhibition of the German Design Awards 2023, which will take place in the Museum für Angewandte Kunst in Frankfurt/Main from 03-19 February 2023.

Read more about the project here: go to project page.