Fossil Phase Out – Strategic Planning of heating networks in a holistic way

The guideline incorporates the possibilities of spatial energy planning and outlines planning steps within the context of municipal planning processes regarding heating networks, ranging from design to the implementation plan of the networks.

As a pilot implementation, the approach described in the guideline is applied to the city of Gleisdorf and the district heating supply area of Stadtwerke Gleisdorf GmbH.

The planning process comprises the following steps:

• Inventory Analysis: Spatial analysis of buildings and energy infrastructure data, modeling of space heating demands; assessment of process heat demands and waste heat.
• Potential Analysis: Spatial analysis of local renewable heat potentials, including waste heat.
• Scenario Analysis: Setting goals for the decarbonization of the space heating sector, including low-temperature process heat, by 2040.
• Heat Transition Strategy: catalog of measures along the transformation path, adaptations concerning the organizational structure, development of monitoring strategy.
• Detailed Heat Network Planning: Focus on network densification and expansion, utilization of energy efficiency potentials, mix of energy sources, load management, storage, pipeline capacities, implementation roadmap.

The experience and knowledge gained from the implementation process in Gleisdorf serves as a showcase solution for multiplication in the participating climate and energy model regions and their municipalities.