As Europe embarks on an ambitious decarbonisation journey, smart sector integration has been identified as a key enabler of our climate and energy objectives. To ensure that European industries, cities and domestic consumers are at the centre of the energy transition, net-zero carbon must be delivered across all sectors and energy systems at local level. Energy experts from Veolia, INNIO and Gas Réseau Distribution France demonstrate how cogeneration applications efficiently link electricity, heat and gas, for lower emissions, higher shares of renewables and overall a more flexible and cost-effective energy system.
| Smart systems integration with cogeneration | Kiel Project: Integrating flexible power and efficient district heating | Nice Smart Valley: Integrated distributed energy for Cote d’Azur |
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Conclusions
| 1. Cogeneration in buildings, industry and districts complements end-use electrification, ensuring lower emissions, higher integration of renewables and overall a more flexible and cost-effective energy system.
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| 2. The Coastal Power Plant K.I.E.L project highlights the synergies between efficient and flexible cogeneration, district heating and power markets. Kiel’s Intelligent Power Solution enables the city of Kiel to reduce its power and heat carbon emissions by 70%, while serving 73,000 customers with heat and maximising the use of variable renewables from the power grids.
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| 3. Nice Smart Valley, a pilot of the Interflex EU project, is another example of systems integration of power and gas grids through hybrid flexibilities. The pilot demonstrated how synergies between hybrid heating and cogeneration can help stabilise power grids and bring value to local communities. A resilient energy transition to net-zero carbon involves a mix of systems integration solutions like cogeneration and hybrid systems, storable renewable gases and intermittent renewable electricity.
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| 4. To be successful, energy systems integration should take a broad approach and enable all future proof solutions to work together across different sectors. Buildings in particular will enable systems integration through a mix complementing solutions, including efficient and renewable electrification, district heating and cogeneration. To achieve this, integrated strategic planning of power, heat and gas infrastructure must be undertaken at local level, near the consumer. Moreover, system level energy efficiency will be key to ensure cost-effectiveness of integration. |
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