District heating is a hot topic in the UK and a delegation from the Scottish government recently visited Denmark to learn about Danish district heating.
“Denmark and Scotland have had a close partnership since 2015, and we have provided the Scots with inspiration and Danish know-how through workshops, conferences and delegation visits”, says Bo Riisgaard Pedersen, Special Advisor at the Danish Energy Agency.
Success in Denmark
There are currently around 17,000 heat networks in the UK and the government has a clear ambition to increase the role of district heating in the future. For example, by 2030 20% of all homes in Scotland will be connected to district heating.
For that reason, a delegation consisting of 10 Scots visited Denmark to learn from Danish experiences. The trip included visits to the Danish Energy Regulatory Authority, the Danish Energy Agency and Energinet.dk to learn about how the Danish energy sector, and the district heating sector in particular, is structured.
They also learned about more concrete examples of Danish competencies within district heating when they visited VEKS, Køge district heating plant, CopenHill and Borup district heating plant.
Success in Scotland
The aim to heat more Scottish homes with district heating creates opportunities for Danish businesses. One of the businesses that has already been successful in Scotland is the producer of piping systems Isoplus. “In recent years, our activity in Scotland has increased and we have been following the growth in the Scottish district heating market closely. There is clearly support and interest from both the Scottish government and at the local city council level. Therefore we expect to continue our presence and growth on the Scottish market in the coming years”, says director at isoplus Denmark, Verner Rosendal.
Large potential in Scotland
isoplus is not the only business that has realised the potential of the growing Scottish market. “We have seen several Danish businesses successfully invest in Scotland and we are well placed to assist businesses establish contact to project developers, distribution companies and city councils”, says Rasmus Traberg, senior expert at the Danish Embassy in London
Source: Energy Supply DK