heat and cooling supply

Renewables currently provide just 3% of the Transition Economies’ primary energy demand for heat supply, the main contribution coming from the use of biomass. The lack of available infrastructure for modern and efficient district heating networks is a barrier to the large scale utilisation of biomass, geothermal and solar thermal energy. Dedicated support instruments are required to ensure a dynamic development.

In the Energy [R]evolution Scenario, renewables provide 75% of the Transition Economies’ total heating demand in 2050.

Energy efficiency measures can moderate the increase in heat demand, and in spite of improving living standards after 2030 lead to a decrease in demand, which in 2050 is slightly lower than at present.
For direct heating, solar collectors, biomass/biogas as well as geothermal energy are increasingly substituting for fossil fuelfired systems.
A shift from coal and oil to natural gas in the remaining conventional applications will lead to a further reduction of CO2 emissions.

Institute DLR, Institute of Technical Thermodynamics, Department of Systems Analysis and Technology Assessment, Stuttgart, Germany
Ecofys BV, P.O. Box 8408, NL-3503 RK Utrecht, Kanaalweg 16-G

Regional Partners: OECD North America WorldWatch Institute; Greenpeace USA Latin America University of Sao Paulo; Greenpeace Brazil; OECD Europe European Renewable Energy Council; Transition Economies Vladimir Tchouprov Africa & Middle East Reference Project: “Trans-Mediterranean Interconnection for Concentrating Solar Power” 2006; Greenpeace Mediterranean; South Asia Rangan Banerjee, Bangalore, India; Greenpeace India; East Asia ISEP-Institute Tokyo; Greenpeace South East Asia; China Prof. Zhang Xilian, Tsinghua University, Beijing; Greenpeace China; OECD Pacific ISEP-Institute Tokyo, Japan; Dialog Institute,Wellington, New Zealand; Greenpeace Australia Pacific; Greenpeace New Zealand