Guidelines on community-led heating and cooling

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Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)

SME’s are important stakeholders in the development of Community-led Heating and Cooling (CH&C), both as consumers and suppliers of heat and coolth. Firstly, because SME’s in the region are often large users of H&C, especially compared to individual citizens, they are therefore attractive from a business-plan perspective. Secondly, because their energy use is different than a citizen’s, SME’s are often reliant on a stable and trustworthy energy supply. When the energy flow stops for a day in a household it’s a nuisance, if it stops in a hospital or hotel it is disastrous for that stakeholder. Given that CH&C is citizen-owned, it is the most stable option for heating and cooling needs and therefore an extremely attractive option for municipalities and local SMEs.

In addition to consumption, SMEs often have larger surface areas where your energy community can install renewable H&C installations, such as solar thermal, geothermal, heat pumps, or waste heat.

 

Example

To start their district heating project, the Belgian energy community Beauvent started with only local industrial SMEs near the heat source as clients. Their project was economically viable with only 9 local industrial clients, because of the volume of heat they would consume. From there on they expanded to apartment buildings and public buildings. They are now in the process of expanding to more individual households. The citizens are the ones doing the decision-making, in collaboration with the municipality and involved SMEs.

 

Does your energy community collaborate with SMEs for their H&C, and you would like to see it in these Digital Guidelines? Send an email to info@energycommunityplatform.eu.