Consumers in district heating and cooling : background report on how to evaluate the sustainability of district heating and cooling

Article 24 of the Renewable Energy Directive (RED II) addresses district heating and cooling (DHC) by strengthening the role of consumers (paragraphs 1, 2, 3) and by encouraging an increase of renewable energy sources (RES) in DHC (paragraphs 4, 5, 6). According to paragraph 1 of this Article, Member States shall ensure that information on the energy performance and the share of RES in their DHC systems is provided to final consumers. The aim of this report is to discuss different calculation methodologies and indicators which quantify energy performance and RES share of the DHC network. We discuss the adequacy of using these different indicators to present how sustainable the heat or cold supply of a particular DHC system is. The primary energy factor (PEF) for the DHC networks including the assumption on PEF values for different fuels and allocation methods in combined heat and power (CHP) plants are analysed. As the PEF indicator is widely used in different energy system contexts, we assess the accuracy of using PEF as an indicator for sustainability. In addition, we propose to use the following indicators: RES share and waste share, the CO2-emission factor, efficiency as well as compliance with the definition of EDHC (efficient district heating and cooling). We provide a proposal for a harmonised methodological approach for EU-27 for these indicators. To communicate this harmonised approach, we develop a guidance document addressing the DHC operator on how to calculate the indicators. And finally, we show how these indicators can be communicated to the final customer of the district heat supply.