Periodic Reporting for period 2 - DecarbCityPipes 2050 (Decarb City Pipes 2050 - Transition roadmaps to energy efficient, zero-carbon urban heating and cooling)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2022-02-01 al 2023-12-31
Given the long lifecycles of grid infrastructure (“city pipes”: district heating and gas grid; electricity grid) as well as of buildings, their envelopes and their heating systems, the planning of the heating transition must begin today. But how? What to do first? Which systems to adopt? How to govern this process? A high level of knowledge and skills is required to plan a successful heating and cooling transition.
The project showcased how local authorities can build the capacity to make progress in addressing this challenge. Seven cities joined forces to learn from each other and elaborate innovative responses together. These cities – ranging from frontrunners to beginners – built up skills in the collection and use of data, and the design and deployment of planning tools and instruments and explored transition pathways suitable for their local challenges. They also built up internal know-how on transition management.
In this process, cities were supported by two scientific partners and an international advisory board. In addition, Energy Cities, the European association of local authorities in energy transition, coordinated the dissemination of insights and results to other cities and stakeholders.
The project showcased how local authorities can build the capacity to make progress in addressing this challenge. Seven cities joined forces to learn from each other and elaborate innovative responses together. These cities – ranging from frontrunners to beginners – built up skills in the collection and use of data, and the design and deployment of planning tools and instruments and explored transition pathways suitable for their local challenges. They also built up internal know-how on transition management.
In this process, cities were supported by two scientific partners and an international advisory board. In addition, Energy Cities, the European association of local authorities in energy transition, coordinated the dissemination of insights and results to other cities and stakeholders.
The work was structured into three decisive steps and related key results: (1) a common heating and cooling outlook, (2) taylored heating and cooling plans and (3) transition roadmaps.
The first task was to established local working groups to discuss in detail local visions, outlooks for a climate neutral heating and cooling sector, and spatially differentiated heating and cooling plans as well as transition roadmaps. These local working groups included stakeholders from city administrations as well as utilities, grid operators (DSO), First, the cities elaborated a climate neutral “Heating and Cooling Outlook” (by 2050 or earlier). Assumptions about the future energy demand and future energy supply mix were discussed and agreed upon. Key learning in this context: the future availability and role of heating networks and of “renewable gases” (biogas or green hydrogen) is essential, as the answer to these questions has huge implications for infrastructure planning within cities. There was agreement among the partners that green gases will neither be available in sufficient quantities in time for heat decarbonisation nor will they be affordable for customers. Therefore, cities should not rely on the hope to simply replace natural gas by green gases and use existing gas infrastructure for zero-carbon heating.
Based on these insights, the cities aligned their quantitative vision of future demand with local supply conditions, taking into account issues such as “heat demand density”, the availability of infrastructure and on site energy potentials and energy generation capabilities. This resulted in spatially differentiated “Heating and Cooling Plans” (with a “WHAT map” and ideally also a “WHEN map”), which have two main energy systems in common: (1) District heating grids to be created, expanded or densified in dense areas, and (2) heat pumps (in buildings or in micro-grids) for the less dense areas.
In the third step, the cities developed “Transition Roadmaps”. These lay out instruments to be employed, actions, sub-targets and milestones, etc.
In the second half of the project, peer-to-peer learning was supported by “study tours” during which relevant stakeholders of cities visited others and studied different H/C transition strategies in action.
“Beginner cities” also learned from “frontrunner cities”, like Winterthur, about the challenges cities encounter once the necessary legally binding framework for the phase out of oil and gas boilers is in place.
Under the auspices of Energy Cities, the project reached out to a much wider group of cities, not least through the project's active online presence (e.g. website, newsletter, Twitter, etc.) but also with webinars, etc. Guidance for cities, stories from the seven cities as well as heating & cooling plans and roadmaps of the cities are available at the project’s website.
The first task was to established local working groups to discuss in detail local visions, outlooks for a climate neutral heating and cooling sector, and spatially differentiated heating and cooling plans as well as transition roadmaps. These local working groups included stakeholders from city administrations as well as utilities, grid operators (DSO), First, the cities elaborated a climate neutral “Heating and Cooling Outlook” (by 2050 or earlier). Assumptions about the future energy demand and future energy supply mix were discussed and agreed upon. Key learning in this context: the future availability and role of heating networks and of “renewable gases” (biogas or green hydrogen) is essential, as the answer to these questions has huge implications for infrastructure planning within cities. There was agreement among the partners that green gases will neither be available in sufficient quantities in time for heat decarbonisation nor will they be affordable for customers. Therefore, cities should not rely on the hope to simply replace natural gas by green gases and use existing gas infrastructure for zero-carbon heating.
Based on these insights, the cities aligned their quantitative vision of future demand with local supply conditions, taking into account issues such as “heat demand density”, the availability of infrastructure and on site energy potentials and energy generation capabilities. This resulted in spatially differentiated “Heating and Cooling Plans” (with a “WHAT map” and ideally also a “WHEN map”), which have two main energy systems in common: (1) District heating grids to be created, expanded or densified in dense areas, and (2) heat pumps (in buildings or in micro-grids) for the less dense areas.
In the third step, the cities developed “Transition Roadmaps”. These lay out instruments to be employed, actions, sub-targets and milestones, etc.
In the second half of the project, peer-to-peer learning was supported by “study tours” during which relevant stakeholders of cities visited others and studied different H/C transition strategies in action.
“Beginner cities” also learned from “frontrunner cities”, like Winterthur, about the challenges cities encounter once the necessary legally binding framework for the phase out of oil and gas boilers is in place.
Under the auspices of Energy Cities, the project reached out to a much wider group of cities, not least through the project's active online presence (e.g. website, newsletter, Twitter, etc.) but also with webinars, etc. Guidance for cities, stories from the seven cities as well as heating & cooling plans and roadmaps of the cities are available at the project’s website.
The cities undertook deliberations and planning processes that need to be undertaken in many more European cities. Thus the projects’ results come very timely and experiences, recommendations, tools etc. developed within this project may help many other cities to speed up their considerations, their planning, and their set-up of governcance structures to phase out the use of fossil fuels in buildings.
The project has underlined that transition processes at city level require broad stakeholder cooperation, not least between the city, its grid operators and utilities, but also with civil society, etc. The project empowered 240 public officers within the participating cities and more than 200 officers in other cities.
In addition, 53 policies – from laws to funding guidelines and strategies – mostly at city level but also at regional or national level, were improved or influenced through activities and engagement of the consortium partners.
The project also developed key recommendations to national governments and the European Union (see “Images attached” below).
The project succeeded to support several meetings at which the gas package was discussed by Members of the European Parliament and members of the European Commission and contributed to the final design of the directive calling for increased alignment of the network development plans for natural gas, hydrogen and electricity, in particular also at the distribution grid level. Hydrogen is to be used primarily in sectors that are difficult to decarbonise. Municipal heating and cooling plans, which all cities with a population of over 45,000 must draw up in future, must also be taken into account when planning the grids. Gas distribution network operators must draw up plans for the decommissioning of networks if the implementation of municipal heating plans is expected to lead to a decline in demand for natural gas. At a press conference on the directive at the end of the trilogue, the rapporteur on the directive in the European Parliament referred to the example set by cities in the Decarb City Pipes consortium as one of the factors that inspired the call for mandatory network planning for gas distribution.
The project has underlined that transition processes at city level require broad stakeholder cooperation, not least between the city, its grid operators and utilities, but also with civil society, etc. The project empowered 240 public officers within the participating cities and more than 200 officers in other cities.
In addition, 53 policies – from laws to funding guidelines and strategies – mostly at city level but also at regional or national level, were improved or influenced through activities and engagement of the consortium partners.
The project also developed key recommendations to national governments and the European Union (see “Images attached” below).
The project succeeded to support several meetings at which the gas package was discussed by Members of the European Parliament and members of the European Commission and contributed to the final design of the directive calling for increased alignment of the network development plans for natural gas, hydrogen and electricity, in particular also at the distribution grid level. Hydrogen is to be used primarily in sectors that are difficult to decarbonise. Municipal heating and cooling plans, which all cities with a population of over 45,000 must draw up in future, must also be taken into account when planning the grids. Gas distribution network operators must draw up plans for the decommissioning of networks if the implementation of municipal heating plans is expected to lead to a decline in demand for natural gas. At a press conference on the directive at the end of the trilogue, the rapporteur on the directive in the European Parliament referred to the example set by cities in the Decarb City Pipes consortium as one of the factors that inspired the call for mandatory network planning for gas distribution.