The Act!onHeat project has offered insights into the challenges and opportunities municipalities encounter in the strategic planning of heating and cooling (H&C) systems, along with the following core learnings and recommendations.
Learnings
• Resource and Expertise Limitations: Municipalities often struggle with limited resources and expertise, hindering their ability to effectively plan and implement H&C projects. Building regional expertise through trained energy agencies is crucial for supporting municipalities.
• Flexibility in Support: Support structures must be adaptable to accommodate the varying progress of municipalities. Providing a flexible selection of activities and tools can enhance engagement and responsiveness to local needs.
• Data Availability: The procurement and availability of data represent a central challenge. Clear guidelines for data sharing and aggregation are essential to facilitate planning and reduce uncertainties.
Recommendations
• Political Mobilization: When developing a H&C vision, it is important to involve all relevant stakeholders, including energy agencies and municipal administrations. Effective communication about the benefits of H&C planning is vital for securing commitment.
• Urban Planning: Establishing an H&C working group is essential, as is comprehensive data collection. Integrating H&C strategies into existing frameworks, such as the Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans (SECAP) of the Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy, can provide a structured approach to local energy transitions.
• Implementing EED: When integrating EED requirements for heating and cooling (H&C) planning into national law, it is essential to assess how H&C can be effectively incorporated into existing policies. Simply replicating policies from pioneer states may lead to ineffective implementation and could result in unnecessary overlaps with existing policies. The focus should be on effectively aligning H&C strategies with current planning policies.
• Financing: Municipalities should leverage EU funding programs and consider blended financing approaches to support sustainable H&C solutions. Public-private partnerships can mitigate risks and accelerate project implementation.
• Communication: Targeted communication and training opportunities are crucial for engaging stakeholders and effectively disseminating the results of H&C planning efforts.
Finally, the insights gained from Act!onHeat provide a Local Replication Roadmap (Local Replication Roadmap | Act!onHeat) that integrates a wealth of knowledge to empower municipalities in developing their own strategies, rather than offering a one-size-fits-all approach.
