On Tuesday, September 24, BUILD UP hosted a webinar on ‘Thermal communities and citizen-led initiatives for sustainability in buildings’, organised with FEDARENE, Ambiente Italia and Euroheat & Power. This event delved into the role of the ConnectHeat project in increasing the knowledge level on thermal communities and the different forms under which they can occur, as well as demonstrating the current EU legislative framework for community energy.

The webinar started with an introduction on the ConnectHeat project, given by Riccardo Battisti, Senior Project Manager at Ambiente Italia and coordinator of the project. ‘The discussion about heating communities is linked to the Recasting Energy Directive (RED II), and this is why it was crucial to put the focus of energy communities on heat only’ started Battisti. ‘Within the ConnectHeat project we are aiming at having 7 pilot cases by the end, as well as developing position papers and roadmaps to help fill in the legislation gap’.

During the second session, Aurore Dudka, Researcher at the University of Trento, provided insights about the importance of focusing on district heating and energy communities. ‘The transition of district heating from its current fossil fuel-based energy system to its future role in a sustainable fossil-free society is a major challenge: it needs a reimagining of how district heating is utilized, demanding a significant increase in system flexibility and stronger user’s engagement’ said Dudka.

Magdalena Berberich, Deputy Institute Director at Solites, presented the German example of a thermal community case in Breitenholz. ‘The energy transition village of Breitenholz was initiated in 2018 as a district heating project’ said Berberich, adding that ‘the heat supply of the village is 100% coming from renewable: 65% comes from wood chips, and the remaining 35% from solar thermal’.

Finally, Asma Sohail, Research Associate at Solites, presented the pilot case of ConnectHeat in Stuttgart. ‘The focus of the energy community in Stuttgart revolves on the tenants of the Stuttgart Housing and Urban Development Corporation (SWSG): these tenants are characterised by diverse social and cultural backgrounds, while on the other hand, they are all coming from low-income households’ added Sohail.

The webinar ended with a lively Q&A session with the audience, which focused, among others, on the impact of citizen participation on the energy community and the inclusion of low-income households into the model of thermal communities.