This project invites municipalities in the Netherlands to participate in knowledge-sharing and sparring with Dutch and Danish experts on district heating development. The project includes “masterclass” workshops and a tailor-made study trip to Denmark to learn about sustainable, reliable, and affordable district heating development.
The project aims to support Dutch municipalities in planning and executing a green heating transition from natural gas to district heating. The project consists of three workshops and a study trip to Denmark, and all activities are organized in an informal style with dialogue and questions.
The program is made specifically for Dutch municipalities and will be scoped to match the needs of the participating municipalities. The organisers of this Dutch-Danish project are VNG, The Danish Energy Agency, The Embassy of Denmark in the Netherlands, and DBDH.
A preliminary program has been drafted based on the learnings from a joint Dutch-Danish project on district heating and heat planning from 2021-2022. The cities of Amersfoort, Assen, Breda, Groningen, Tilburg, and Zaanstad participated in that project, and the organizers are now offering other Dutch municipalities a similar opportunity.
Among the planned topics are:
- Understanding the challenges in the Netherlands
- Overall planning – from initiative to operation
- Financing district heating
- Converting from natural gas to district heating
- Heat sources and how to combine them into a robust system
- Collaboration between municipalities and DH companies
- Stakeholder involvement in heat and strategic energy planning
- Helping each other and overcoming barriers
The project is offering 10-15 places for Dutch municipalities engaged in developing district heating. The project will organize and facilitate the activities, and the municipalities are expected to contribute with active participation (1-2 people pr. activity) and cover their own time and travel expenses.
We recommend continuity because the same people from the municipality attend all activities, but it is also possible to bring a colleague for a particular workshop. The program targets key municipal employees working with heat planning and sustainable heat transition.
To learn more about the project or to sign up, don’t hesitate to contact Mikkel Vibæk Jensen, Embassy of Denmark in the Netherlands, mivije@um.dk. The deadline for registration is 21 April 2023.