By 2030, almost 5 billion people (about 60 percent of the global population) will live in cities, leading to massive requirements for energy to power growth and expand basic infrastructure. Energy efficiency can offer practical solutions to meet energy needs without sacrificing development or environmental priorities.
District energy is recognised as one of the main city-level options that could play an important role, enhancing the overall energy efficiency movement and contributing to the achievement of the targets in the Paris Climate Agreement, as well as the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
For the past three years, DTU Management, through the UNEP DTU Partnership, has worked to develop, promote and implement green and efficient district energy solutions around the world, with the support of Bitten & Mads Clausen's Foundation. Now the foundation has renewed its support to UNEP DTU Partnership's work to accelerate the deployment and investments in district energy systems.
UNEP DTU
UNEP DTU Partnership is a leading international research institution in energy, climate, and sustainable development located in the UN City in Copenhagen. The partnership is collaborating with developing countries worldwide on climate adjustment, reduction of CO2 emissions, and implementation of green technology focused on meeting goals number 7 on green energy and number 13 on climate action in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Advancing new projects towards realization
Bitten & Mads Clausen's Foundation supports UNEP DTU Partnership’s work on district energy, directly helping the partnership's Copenhagen Centre on Energy Efficiency expand its expertise and work with cities around the world.
CEO of the Foundation explains:
The foundation supports projects within renewable energy and energy efficiency that advance Danfoss' vision of sustainable behaviour and solutions and has in that context been supporting UNEP DTU Partnership's work. The Partnership has since 2016 proved very successful in placing district energy on the agenda in a global context, with an approach where technical experts engaged by UNEP DTU Partnership are supporting directly with information, analysis and consulting 'on the ground'. The initiative has a strong action- and result orientation, effectively advancing new projects towards realization.
Per Have, CEO of the Bitten & Mads Clausen Foundation
Building momentum
Since 2016, the District Energy in Cities Initiative has grown and reached out to more than 40 cities in Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America, with significant momentum towards new projects soon reaching procurement phase in Chile, India, Serbia and Morocco. The funding from the Bitten & Mads Clausen Foundation has been instrumental in achieving these.
In Chile this work has led to 14 cities, including the capital Santiago, exploring district heating options for heating, based on a pilot project in the city of Temuco, assisted by the Copenhagen Centre on Energy Efficiency.
A strong momentum has been created around district energy, both for heating and for cooling. This momentum is not only driven by energy efficiency as tool for climate mitigation, but also seen as an air-pollution mitigation opportunity, highly noteworthy in many developing countries and cities.
UNEP DTU Partnership Head of Strategy for Business Models and Markets, Gabriela Dias explains the importance of the support:
Over the past three years, with the support of the Bitten & Mads Clausen Foundation and Danfoss, we have successfully supported the kick start of new concrete projects on all continents, both in district heating and district cooling, as a way of solving challenges local communities were facing.
Gabriela Dias
Expanding and scaling projects
The continued partnership with Bitten and Mads Clausen's Foundation allows for wider and more productive collaborations, both in already engaged countries and new ones.
It also opens the possibility of strong integration of industry involvement with the District Energy in Cities Initiative.
The funding will furthermore allow for additional work on the potential of centralised heating and cooling systems in industrial-type of facilities, building on projects that are underway for cooling in the data centre sector and at energy intensive industrial sites.
To read more about the project, follow the link below:
