CONFIDENCE: Empowering Dutch Municipalities for Sustainable DH

The CONFIDENCE project supports Dutch municipalities transitioning from natural gas to sustainable district heating (DH). The municipalities have been assigned the leading role in this transition, and the municipality of Súdwest-Fryslân (SWF) is developing an approach that can also inspire other Dutch municipalities. The project focus is supporting SWF with knowledge and sparring from Danish and Dutch experts in heat planning and DH.

Building Municipal Capacity: A Key to Successful District Heating

Dutch municipalities are stepping into a leading role in the heating transition, yet many face challenges in readiness and execution. The CONFIDENCE project addresses these concerns, aiming to enhance municipal competencies to boost the development of organisation and financing of district heating in the Netherlands.

Effectively developing and implementing DH systems includes defining municipal roles, fostering public ownership, and ensuring robust municipal, provincial, and national support structures. The core of the project is the municipality in Súdwest-Fryslân (SWF), and the project supports its efforts to establish and develop a 100% municipality-owned DH company for the heat sector’s transition.

Municipality of Súdwest-Fryslân (project partner):

SWF municipality is keen to explore where to take the lead as a municipality. At the same time, local initiative is key in the development of a local public heat company. Creating an organisation with the right balance between local ownership and a solid role from the municipality is one of the key questions.

Overcoming Investment Barriers

One of the critical challenges identified is financing DH systems. The current financing scheme in NL requires a lot of equity, and loan interest rates are higher as financial institutions in NL consider DH a high-risk business. This is opposite to Denmark, where DH is widespread and well-established but also operates under different framework conditions.

Also, subsidies rather than an approach based on guarantees are in focus. This means that developing new ways to finance the investments that de-risk the investment could have a significant impact on the roll-out of DH in NL. The CONFIDENCE project supports this development.

Knowledge Exchange: Leveraging Danish and Dutch Expertise

The project emphasizes the importance of knowledge sharing between Dutch municipalities, the Province of Fryslân, the Association of Dutch Municipalities (VNG), the BNG Bank, and Danish experts.

Through tailored workshops and collaborative sessions, participants will gain insights into best practices and innovative approaches. This exchange is crucial for adapting successful strategies to the Dutch context and enhancing local capabilities.

Moreover, the project will engage in dialogue with Danish companies in the DH sector to share knowledge about the Dutch DH market and to support increased Dutch-Danish activities.

Expected Outcomes: Empowering Municipalities for the Future

The CONFIDENCE project is designed to work in-depth with the SWF municipality as they develop their approach. The other project partners will offer expertise and challenging advice while gaining insights for their own work. The key deliverables include:

• Public Report: Summarizing findings and recommendations for municipalities.
• Deep dive workshops (on-site in the Netherlands): Tailored sessions designed to foster collaboration and co-development.
• Sparing workshops online: Fostering the dialogue with dutch actors and with international practitioners who face the same challenges.
• Final dissemination conference (on-site in the Netherlands): includes presentation of project results and discussions on the next steps among all participants.