Berglen remains cold: no district heating network in sight for the community!

Berglen remains cold: no district heating network in sight for the community!

As part of the municipal heat planning (KWP), the municipality of Berglen is obliged to make the heat supply sustainable. These plans focus on the need to convert the heat supply to renewable energies. However, the administration and Syna, an energy provider, estimate that Berglen is not suitable for connection to a district heating network. There are currently no district heating supplies in the community, which consists of 21 towns and hamlets, which makes the implementation of such a network considerably more difficult.

All municipalities in Germany, including Berglen, must create municipal heat planning. This planning not only serves to decarbonize, but also to ensure a stable heat supply and independence from fossil fuels. It also aims to reduce energy costs. The planning examines whether a local or district heating network can be implemented locally and offers citizens the opportunity to receive information about the opportunities of such a network in their neighborhood. Public participation is provided for in the Heat Planning Act so that residents can view the results and provide feedback.

The steps of municipal heat planning

The details of municipal heat planning include several steps that usually have to be updated every five years. The municipalities must clarify the following questions, among others:

• Welche Gebäude gibt es?
• Wie werden sie beheizt?
• Wie hoch ist der Heizenergiebedarf?
• Wie alt sind die Heizungsanlagen?

The planning leads to an inventory analysis of the current heat requirements and the existing infrastructure. Building on this, the potential for renewable energies and waste heat is examined. The final implementation strategy should enable the overarching goals to be achieved, although the municipality of Berglen has not yet made any progress in the discussion about the possibility of a heating network.

Legal framework

The Building Energy Act (GEG) stipulates that from 2024 only heating with renewable energies and unavoidable waste heat will be permitted. This law is closely linked to the Heat Planning Act, so that regulations for new heating systems only apply after the municipal heat planning has been presented.

Although Berglen is obliged to plan heat, it remains to be seen how the situation will develop with the hurdles of the existing infrastructure system and the large number of individual locations on site. An obligation to connect to a heat or hydrogen network can arise through municipal statutes, but this remains an open topic in the current community discussion.

Given the challenges of municipal heat planning, the municipality will have to continue working to find suitable solutions to shape the energy supply of the future. A district heating network does not seem to be in prospect for the time being.

For further information about municipal heat planning and the associated processes, please click on the links: ZVW and Consumer advice center NRW.