LIFE heating Danish homes via green district networks

Winter is rolling in across southern Denmark — and with it comes the need to turn the heating up at home and work. More than 20 municipalities have set a target of a totally green heating supply by 2030, with a focus on 100 000 households and buildings not yet connected to district heating networks or where district heating isn’t an option. Homeowners have 5 years to change their heating sources to individual heat pumps and micro-grids.  

LIFE COHEAT2 has spent 2 years leading consultations with citizens and building capacity of municipalities in Southern Denmark to renovate homes and connect homes to district heating — the best option in denser areas, such as towns and cities — while in more rural areas individual heat pumps are replacing traditional oil and gas boilers. Some homes in smaller towns and villages, where traditional district heating can be too expensive, could benefit from Thermonet, a local heating approach by which the heat from a common high-capacity heat pump is distributed to individual buildings by a local pipeline network or micro-grid. This approach is being trialled by COHEAT2, where possible, as a heating option.    

Local authorities have planned bespoke solutions for buildings, homeowners and communities via 3 central project development units (PDUs) in the Triangle Region, Funen and Sønderborg. PDUs connect owners with heating suppliers, planners and energy and financial advisers. Nearly 600 homes are listed for an energy efficiency makeover, 900 will have heat pumps installed and district heating projects will cover a further 1 200.  

In Sønderborg — one of the most ambitious municipalities with a target of carbon neutrality by 2029 — the public-private partnership ProjectZero leads the PDU and has created a local heat organisation to get communities engaged in collective green heating.  

‘It’s been a complex task involving investment options, communication and behaviour change,’ says Anne Branderup, a senior consultant with ProjectZero. ‘It’s difficult to have successful meetings with larger groups of citizens and house owners. You can end up meeting resistance instead of support among the house owners. Remember that we are dealing with private homeowners who can, largely, choose their own way of investing or not at all.’ 

Communication is key — after all, homeowners are spending their own money on renovations — and COHEAT2 understands that solutions must be concise, technically feasible and right for their homes. With an investment target from private householders of €31.9 million, the project has collaborated with local banks to support home owners wanting to make the green transition. As a result, heat pumps have so far been installed in more than 100 homes, another 100 have benefitted from energy efficiency measures, and over 400 have been connected to district heating. 

Residents have also taken part in more than 20 village meetings to learn about local heating solutions using a toolkit developed by COHEAT2 which guides home owners through the process and the specific technical requirements. Following completion this month, the project will continue to support the PDUs — including €5 million worth of investment in Sønderborg alone.   

LIFE COHEAT aligns with the Energy Union Strategy; Energy Performance of Buildings Directive; Energy Efficiency Directive; Moving towards a low-carbon economy in 2050; and REPowerEU.