Power Engineering International
Summary
We need an energy system perspective when addressing the decarbonisation of the heating and cooling sector, writes Aurélie Beauvais. The managing director of Euroheat & Power explains why.
The last few years have marked a turning point in European energy and climate policies. The presentation of the European Green Deal in 2019 introduced a record number of new climate-related initiatives, for a single European political mandate.
In the past years, the European energy transition strategy relied to a large extent on deploying new renewable electricity sources, and fostering energy efficiency measures in industry and buildings. Although necessary, these measures are not enough to tackle the much-needed decarbonisation of the European heating and cooling sector.
Excess heat is another critical clean heat resource. A recent study found that urban waste heat only could meet 14% of the European heat demand for buildings, with the most significant resources coming from wastewater treatment plants (42%), data centers (23%), service sector buildings (19%), and residential buildings (9%).
How do we tap into this potential? This is where district heating and cooling comes into play.
It is a powerful solution to replace fossil-based heating in buildings and industries, harnessing the potential of renewable and recovered heat sources, as well as seasonal heat storage installations. With 41,3% of its energy supply coming from renewables and climate-neutral heat sources , district heating and cooling supplies more than 67 million EU citizens today and could supply more than 20% of Europe’s heat demand by 2030 compared to 12% today.
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