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By Kim Mortensen, Managing Director, The Danish District Heating Association (Dansk Fjernvarme)
The Danish companies, which today create jobs to about 20,000 employees and have a total annual export worth 1 billion Euro, have a golden opportunity to demonstrate their potential internationally even further. In the Danish utility sector, together with district heating companies, the export companies have a solid showcase that can strengthen their exports. In close collaboration, we have demonstrated how the development of new technologies, such as solar heating, can go hand in hand with green conversion, high security of supply and competitive prices.
With the EU Commission's Winter Package, the direction has been set for next year's work in the EU Energy Union. The future is based on increased investments in security of supply, green conversion, energy efficiency, and research and development.
In total it is estimated that from 2021, the package will create private and public investment for approximately 117 billion Euro, while the package is expected to create 900,000 jobs. What the Commission calls for is technological solutions that, on one hand, can ensure a high level of security of supply while also securing that the energy and supply prices will not skyrocket. The Commission also calls for green solutions that can meet our overall 2030 environment and climate goals. From the point of view of district heating and cooling, there is reason to welcome the Commission's initiative. The Winter Package points to a systematic spread of district heating in the other EU countries, and with the strong district heating competencies we have in Denmark, this must cause optimism. In Denmark, district heating has steadily increased the share of renewable energy, and today, renewable energy accounts for more than half of the district heating production, as opposed to just over 30 percent 10 years ago. During the same period, we have kept the prices for district heating customers steady, and the last three years even reduced the price by 10 percent, which means that the average price is at its lowest level. The EU Commission's Winter Package does not indicate the direction for the development of the individual sectors, but sets, with a joint RE target and a number of concrete initiatives, the framework for the individual Member States to be able to be in control and lead the energy sector towards the 2030 targets.
What remains is that a joint EU finds support for the individual initiatives in the package and later that each member state finds out how to translate the initiatives into concrete goals. For some member states, it will probably be difficult due to national reasons, but for the most part, especially the Danish neighboring countries, the direction of the package and the individual initiatives will hopefully be seen as new opportunities for continuing the green change. Here the European Commission's winter package is a good helping hand, which we welcome and look forward to implementing.
For further information please contact:
Dansk Fjernvarme Att.: Kim Mortensen Fjernvarmens Hus Merkurvej 7 DK-6000 Kolding
Phone: +45 7630 8000 kmo@danskfjernvarme.dk
Photos: Nils Rosenvold
www.dbdh.dk
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