The buildings sector represents 40% of the European Union’s (EU) total energy consumption, with heating/cooling systems accounting for up to 68%. The major part of this demand is still covered using fossil fuels and CO2 emissions from this sector represents 36% of the EU’s total. Reducing energy consumption and increasing energy efficiency in buildings is today a prime objective according to the new EU directives. In line with these new regulations, shallow geothermal applications for heating/cooling of buildings have experimented lastly an expansion. The global geothermal heat pumps market revenue in 2013 was €49 billion and is estimated to reach €115.4 billion by the end of 2020, with a progressive CAGR of 13.1%. Europe accounts for almost 50% of this market: GREEN EPILE is a new generation of energy piles solving the most critical problems hindering their deployment. Several improvements have been planned: (i) a very ambitious monitoring program to guarantee the long-term exploitation, (ii) a systematization of the design steps to minimize costs due to field studies, (iii) simplification of the installation by facilitating the trimming works at the pile head, and (iv) eliminate intermediaries and shortages in the procurement chain by means of our 1-stop shop.
We have performed a Feasibility Study in which the viability of the project has been confirmed after reviewing all the relevant technical, commercial and financial aspects. It also has allowed us to define the work plan and to estimate the project budget, which will be mostly covered by the SME Instrument grant. An in-depth FTO analysis has also been carried out. After the execution of the project, our solution will be launched to the European markets.
