District Energy News

China plans to peak CO2 emissions before 2030 and become CO2-neutral in 2060, and heating is an integral part of the energy consumption. Both China and Denmark are experienced in district heating and have cooperated about energy for almost 20 years and benefit from a collaboration with still more ambitious goals.

A project has been launched to support the clean heating transition in China by demonstrating holistic heat planning – based on Danish experiences and adapted to a carefully selected Chinese city. The project aims to support other Chinese cities in their green transition through capacity building and strong networks in China.

Participants in the project

To strengthen the collaboration and ensure knowledge exchange, the project has strong experts from both China and Denmark. Within the project, the participants are Energy and Climate Academy, NXITY, DBDH, Asia Pacific Urban Energy Association, Trade Council China, and Chinese District Heating Association.

Essential to select a suitable city

The project wishes to collaborate with cities, companies, universities, local authorities, and other relevant stakeholders. The project has already been in dialogue with the Sino-Danish expert panel on district heating about the first important task of the project: To select a suitable city to develop and test the combined approach for planning clean heating in China.

Designing a road map

The next step in the project is to collect data and develop the actual heat plan in collaboration with the city. In parallel, a road map and an inspirational technology catalog will be designed to help other cities make a clean heating transition. The heating plan and the developed materials are the foundations for the final step in the project – the capacity building. A final conference will be arranged in China so that top-level experts can discuss and share results from the projects. It is also vital that the new approach is shared widely and quickly in many cities. Online training courses will be developed to reach many people and support them when they learn new skills.

The project is funded by the Danish Energy Agency through the program Energy Export Initiatives Grants Program (known as TFE in Denmark).