Renewable energy use promoted in Europe
European legislation such as the Renewable Energy Directive and the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive require Member States to develop ambitious policies that promote the use of renewable energy sources and improve energy efficiency in heating and cooling systems. This challenge was addressed by the proRESsHEAT project, which supported the implementation of renewable energy strategies across the EU. The consortium worked with decision-makers to draw up recommendations for a raft of policies to encourage sustainable solutions at the local, regional, national and EU level. According to project coordinator Marcus Hummel: “It provided an analytical basis for policy development in the field, including an assessment of cross-sectoral effects between renewables and energy efficiency measures in industrial heating and cooling, excess heat, heating and cooling in buildings, and district heating.” In-depth analyses of local authorities Project partners focused on 6 local authorities from 6 EU countries – Ansfelden (Austria), Litomerice (Czech Republic), Herten (Germany), Helsingor (Denmark), Matosinhos (Portugal) and Brasov (Romania). Heating and cooling strategies were developed based on in-depth analysis of the local authorities’ specific circumstances, including barriers and drivers, and a model-based assessment of policy intervention in scenarios up to 2050. Hummel comments: “The EnergyPRO local energy advisory tool together with the newly developed Least-Cost-Tool was used for local case studies to appropriately reflect district and individual heating and cooling demand and supply.” At the heart of the process were policymakers who had the opportunity to learn from the experience of other stakeholders and gain a detailed understanding of the impact of policy instruments and their specific design. “They participated via policy group meetings, workshops, interviews and webinars dedicated to policy development assistance, capacity building and dissemination,” says Hummel. Key results included local heating and cooling decarbonisation roadmaps for each of the 6 local authorities involved, plus a set of training materials, which were tested on a target audience. The team based the training materials on a series of presentations concerning a range of topics that included different aspects of policymaking. In addition, the Least Cost Tool was developed for analysis at the local level. Benefits for decision-makers Team members conducted 16 webinars, which dealt with the decarbonisation of heating and cooling at all levels over the mid- to long-term. A policy recommendations leaflet summarising the core recommendations and a policy report providing financial calculations and examples for best practices around Europe was also produced. Lastly, a municipality data mapper revealed the core data of the 6 participating municipalities under review and a country and scenario data mapper revealed the model based scenario calculations in the 6 countries under investigation. The proRESsHEAT project will help decision-makers quickly implement the policies published in the national heating and cooling plans up to the year 2050. “Experiences gained through the project will help to improve the tools available for assisting policymakers in the development of decarbonisation roadmaps and to derive change on their own. This will help to drive climate change mitigation more and more from the local level,” Hummel observes.
Keywords
PROGRESSHEAT, heating, cooling, renewable energy, energy efficiency
