DISTRICT HEATING CAN HELP CUT CARBON EMISSIONS BY 15% IN THE INDUSTRY

The Danish-German RAPIDH project (Renewable and Affordable Process-Integrated District Heating) has explored how district heating systems can integrate with process industries to reduce carbon emissions, use energy resources more efficiently, and support industrial competitiveness. The findings are relevant to European regions where energy-intensive companies and district heating networks operate side by side.

The project’s analyses indicate that district heating can complement electrification in industrial processes where temperature requirements, local grid conditions and economics make a combination of technologies relevant. This can also provide greater flexibility in the energy system and, in some cases, reduce pressure on the electricity grid.

While debate about the green transition of industry often focuses on electrification, RAPIDH has shown that district heating can often be an important complement, making the transition more flexible and economically attractive while easing pressure on the electricity grid.

Industry’s challenge calls for new solutions

Process industries account for a significant share of Europe’s energy consumption and continue to require large amounts of process heat. In sectors including food production, chemicals, pharmaceuticals and manufacturing, this heat is still supplied by natural gas and oil in many locations.

At the same time, companies face stricter climate requirements, rising energy prices and international competition. Solutions are therefore needed that reduce emissions while ensuring stable production conditions.
RAPIDH has addressed this challenge by examining how existing district heating infrastructure can play an active role in supplying energy to industry.

“The green transition of the process industry is complex because companies cannot simply stop production and switch energy source overnight. It is therefore essential to identify solutions that are both technically feasible and economically viable,” says Ole Andreassen Kofoed, Head of Department at Artelia.

One of the project’s key conclusions is that district heating can play a significant role in industry’s overall energy supply.
The analyses show that district heating can serve as a link between multiple energy technologies in industrial energy systems. Depending on local conditions, district heating can be combined with heat pumps, excess heat, renewable energy and energy-efficiency measures as a complement to direct electrification.

The project therefore suggests that the path towards lower emissions does not necessarily lie in a single technology, but in intelligent combinations of several solutions.

Digital modelling supports better decisions

As part of the project, the energyPRO modelling tool has been expanded with functions that can map companies’ energy needs and analyse the interaction between industrial energy systems and district heating networks.
Using advanced energy models and digital twins, companies and energy utilities have been able to simulate different future scenarios and assess both the economic and climate impacts before making investments.

“With this approach, we can view the entire energy system at once—both the process plant and the district heating network. In practice, we build a digital twin of the company’s current setup and add scenarios: What happens if we connect to district heating, reduce gas consumption or add solar PV and an electric boiler? This makes it easier to identify where savings can be achieved and which solutions are genuinely cost-effective, including from an ESG perspective,” explains Linn Laurberg Jensen, Head of Consulting & Applied Engineering at EMD International.

This has provided a more robust basis for decisions on issues including connection to district heating, use of excess heat, installation of heat pumps and reductions in fossil fuel consumption.

“The ability to test different energy solutions digitally can give companies and energy utilities a better basis for comparing carbon reductions, economics and technical implications before they invest,” says Glenda Napier, CEO of Energy Cluster Denmark.

The results show that data-driven analyses can reduce uncertainty surrounding major investments while highlighting the benefits that arise when industry and the energy system are considered together.

From individual companies to entire energy systems

One of the most notable lessons from RAPIDH is the importance of taking a system-level perspective.
Energy projects are traditionally assessed at company level. RAPIDH, by contrast, has demonstrated the value of analysing energy flows across companies, industrial areas and district heating networks.

Several of the project’s analyses have shown that some companies can supply excess heat that can be used by other companies or by the district heating network. This creates new opportunities to reduce wasted energy and increase overall energy efficiency.

The project partners regard this sector integration as one of the most promising ways to accelerate the green transition of energy-intensive industries.

Demonstrations have translated theory into practice

RAPIDH has tested methods and tools in demonstration cases in Denmark and Germany. Combining cases from two different energy and industrial contexts has made it possible to examine how closer integration between process industries and district heating can work under different local conditions.

The demonstrations have provided valuable evidence of the technical, economic and environmental effects of closer integration between industry and district heating.
At the same time, the project has helped establish a shared knowledge base for companies, energy utilities and decision-makers who will be responsible for implementing the green transition.

Lessons with relevance far beyond Denmark

Many European industrial regions face the same challenge: reducing emissions without undermining business competitiveness or overloading the electricity system. NRW.Energy4Climate from the industrial German state of North Rhine-Westphalia therefore participated in the project from the outset. The lessons from the Danish and German cases may be particularly relevant in areas where process industries, district heating networks and local sources of excess heat are located close to one another.

“The project has shown that district heating is not only a solution for heating buildings. When the infrastructure is more closely connected to industrial processes, it can also become an important tool in the transition of some of the sectors where carbon reductions are hardest to achieve,” explains Hanne Kortegaard Støchkel from DBDH, which supports Danish exports and the green transition internationally.

RAPIDH has shifted the perspective

Perhaps the most important lesson from RAPIDH is that the green transition of industry is not only about new technologies, but also about new ways of thinking about energy systems.

Through digital tools, practical demonstrations and cross-sector collaboration, the project has documented that district heating can play an active role in industrial decarbonisation. The results show significant potential in connecting industrial processes and district heating systems more closely, enabling more efficient use of energy resources, replacing fossil fuels and accelerating the overall transition.

RAPIDH therefore leaves not only new tools and analyses, but also an important contribution to understanding how interaction between industry and district heating can help address one of Europe’s most complex climate challenges.

Facts about RAPIDH

RAPIDH stands for Renewable and Affordable Process-Integrated District Heating. The project is supported by EUDP, Denmark’s Energy Technology Development and Demonstration Programme. The project partners are Artelia, EMD International, DBDH, NRW.Energy4Climate and Energy Cluster Denmark.