We advise our members on all relevant EU policy developments and work to highlight the key role that district energy can play in the decarbonisation of the heating and cooling sector as a backbone for smart, sustainable cities. Our vision for the future of the DHC sector can be viewed here.
Decarbonisation of Heating & Cooling
Facing an urgent need for a radical transformation of the energy system in the coming decades, the European Institutions adopted a series of strategies, new initiatives and EU wide targets to turn the EU into the first climate neutral continent by 2050.
The EU Green Deal Communication , published at the end of 2019, sets the initial blueprint to deliver the transformation across various sectors of the economy. The 2030 Climate Target Plan was presented, followed by the Climate Law , which sets the goal for the EU to become climate-neutral by 2050, with an intermediate target of reducing net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels.
On 14 July, the European Commission published the first part of the long-awaited Fit for 55 Package, which aims at putting the EU on track to the 2030 and 2050 goals. The Package is a set of interconnected proposals that translate the overall objective in the different sectoral legislation and targets, accelerating decarbonisation to tackle the climate emergency.
Among the files published under the package, the revision of the Renewable Energy Directive (RED), the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) and the EU Emission Trading System (ETS) are of particular relevance for our sector.
Delivering sustainable heating and cooling is fundamental to achieve Europe’s climate neutrality ambition. The Package reflects the growing emphasis on heating and cooling that has been established with the publication of the EU Heating and Cooling Strategy in 2016.
District heating and cooling (DHC) is already recognised as a proven solution for the decarbonisation. It delivers energy efficiency, facilitates the integration and storage of intermittent renewables, provides a link between a wide range of local sources of heat or cold and the buildings in which they are needed, particularly in cities. The proposals provide a more interconnected and coherent energy framework, with increased ambition and opportunities to set the sector on its way to 2050.
Euroheat & Power has been and will continue to constructively participate in the decision-making process on the files of the Fit for 55 Package.
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