Renewable heat

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Laying a geothermal collector for a heat pump heating system
Solar panels on a house roof

As a renewable heat is called the thermal energy for heating, cooling and hot water, by renewable energy such as geothermal , solar thermal and bioenergy is obtained. In addition, the indirect use of solar energy through solar architecture is also included. The conversion of the traditional heat supply from fossil fuels such as coal, crude oil and natural gas to renewable energies is part of the politically targeted energy transition and is known as the “heating transition”.

development

The heating sector requires around 40 percent of the total energy consumption and causes around 20 percent of the CO 2 emissions in Germany. The area-specific heating energy requirement of multi-family houses fell by 16 percent between 2003 and 2013, while the absolute heating energy requirement only fell by 9.7 percent overall due to the increase in area and has remained constant since 2008 due to declining efficiency gains. At the same time, the heating cost burden on households has risen, as the rise in oil and gas prices advanced faster than the savings.

In the research literature, there is an increasing view that decarbonising electricity generation, followed by electrification of almost all sectors of the energy system, will be the cheapest solution for a sustainable, climate-friendly energy system. In the heating sector, large efficiency gains can be achieved at the same time using heat pump heating . Another important element for the decarbonisation of the heat supply in the context of the energy transition is also considered to be low-temperature heating networks (especially fourth-generation district heating networks and cold local heating systems ).

In 2013, renewable energies covered around 9 percent of Germany's total heating requirements. Over 300,000 wood pellet heating systems , almost 500,000 heat pumps and around 1.8 million solar thermal systems are installed in or on German houses. In the course of the energy transition, this share is to be increased to 14 percent by 2020 according to the goals of the federal government and the heating requirements of buildings to be reduced by 20 percent (compared to 2008). The building stock should be almost climate-neutral by 2050. To this end, the energy consumption of the buildings must be reduced adequately and, at the same time, the expansion of renewable energies for heat utilization must be promoted. However, the development has been rather sluggish recently, with a slight increase in heat demand from 2008 to 2013. Only one in five heating systems in Germany is state-of-the-art today. Investments in renewable energies in the building sector are even declining, according to the Federal Environment Ministry .

Studies see the greatest potential for efficiency in the building sector. "According to this, the final energy requirement for space heating and hot water could fall by around 60 percent by 2050." How much individual technologies can contribute to lowering energy demand and what role renewable heating technologies are considered to be, is the subject of different assessments.

Under favorable political framework conditions, the German Renewable Energy Association expects a 25 percent share of renewable energies in the heat supply by 2020, which corresponds to around 221 terawatt hours of heat. In addition, there is the electricity from renewable energies used in the heating sector (67 terawatt hours). This would avoid CO 2 emissions of approx. 57 million tons and environmental damage of approx. 4 billion euros each year, and reduce the economic costs for energy imports by 16 billion euros. According to calculations by the German Institute for Economic Research , investments in the heating sector totaling 9 billion euros could reduce energy costs by 11 billion euros by 2020 and create 30,000 jobs. The costs for fossil energies would have added up to around 1 trillion euros from 2002 to 2012. In the opinion of the Federal Association for Renewable Energy , combined heat and power generation must be expanded, especially with biomass and geothermal energy as well as hydrogen from green electricity, in order to achieve the politically pursued goals of reducing carbon dioxide. The use of solar thermal energy and heat pumps is to be doubled by 2020.

Legal basis

The legal framework for renewable heat is set out in the Renewable Energy Heat Act, which came into force on January 1, 2009 as part of the Integrated Energy and Climate Program . For the first time, it introduced an obligation to use renewable energies in new buildings. The purpose of the law is "in the interests of climate protection, the conservation of fossil resources and the reduction of dependency on energy imports to enable the sustainable development of heating and cooling and to promote the further development of technologies for the use of renewable energies".

The EU Directive 2009/28 / EC (Renewable Energy Directive) of April 23, 2009 also writes u. a. the introduction of an obligation to use renewable energies for heating and cooling, both for new buildings and, under certain conditions, for existing buildings.

In 2015, the Federal Ministry of Economics presented a strategy for the energy efficiency of buildings. Critics complain that heating based on fossil energies should also be subsidized, although the expansion of renewable energies is more worthy of subsidies.

In the Cooling and Heating Strategy presented in 2016, the EU Commission proposes the end of funding for oil and gas heating. In Germany, these currently amount to around two billion euros per year.

State funding

In Germany, the CO 2 building renovation program is used to grant discounted loans for the energy-efficient renovation of buildings. In this context, around 3.4 million apartments were refurbished between 2006 and 2013, which corresponds to an investment volume of around 150 billion euros. One euro of government funding thus triggered private investments of 12 euros. The renovation rate is currently 1 percent. The Federal Environment Ministry is aiming to double the quota.

The market incentive program promotes the conversion of fossil-fueled heating systems to solar thermal energy , bioenergy and heat pumps . Around 1.5 million systems have been funded through the program since 2012. For 2016, the federal government is earmarking funding of 361.2 million euros (+5 million compared to 2015, −7 million compared to 2014). Industry associations are in favor of increasing the funding for retrofitting to heat pumps, solar systems and biomass heating in order to adapt the funding to the increased demand.

In 2017, the German Renewable Energy Association proposed reforming the energy tax with a CO 2 component in order to promote technologies and meet national climate targets.

costs

According to the Council of Economic Experts for Environmental Issues , the cheapest options for making the heat supply climate-neutral are, in all probability, solar and geothermal energy, as well as the use of heat pump heating and district heating systems ; the latter in particular in order to be able to make use of industrial waste heat currently emitted into the environment for heating purposes.

Compared to oil heating, private households can save operating costs, as comparative calculations show. According to the Center for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research Baden-Württemberg (ZSW), an average of 595 euros per household was saved in consumption-related heating costs in 2009, which corresponds to total savings of 2.56 billion euros compared to fossil-fueled heating systems.

According to the Renewable Energy Agency, heating oil accounted for 35 percent of the total energy costs of a typical private household (compared to 25 percent for electricity, 40 percent for fuel). The heating oil costs doubled between 2000 and 2013. Natural gas has risen by 70 percent in the same period. Due to rising oil and gas prices, heat pumps, pellet heating systems and solar heating systems can be represented more economically than oil and gas heating systems despite higher acquisition costs, due to lower consumption-related costs. This is confirmed by calculations by ZDF WISO .

Import prices for fossil fuels have recently fallen faster than consumer prices. According to the Federal Statistical Office, the import prices for fuels fell by 10% in 2014 compared to 2013 (natural gas: 13.8%, crude oil: 9%). In contrast, the consumer price for gas remained relatively stable at an average of 6.7 cents per kWh (2013: 6.8 cents). According to the German Energy Wood and Pellet Association (DEPV), the price for wood pellets fell by 6% in 2014 (to 258 euros per ton), and according to the Federal Network Agency, the price for biogas fell by 9% (to 6.44 cents in 2013). In 2013, renewable heat accounted for 11.7 percent of the heat supply from private households.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d The energy transition needs a heating transition . Federal Government, January 28, 2014, accessed on September 6, 2014.
  2. ↑ DIW: Heat Monitor Germany 2013 : Heating energy consumption falls, costs rise. from October 9, 2014
  3. ↑ Nancy M. Haegel et al .: terawatt-scale photovoltaics: Transform global energy . In: Science . tape 364 , no. 6443 , 2019, p. 836-828 , doi : 10.1126 / science.aaw1845 .
  4. ↑ Volker Quaschning : Renewable energies and climate protection. 4th edition, Munich 2018, pp. 114f.
  5. ↑ Dietmar Schüwer: Conversion of the heat supply structures . In: Energy industry issues of the day . tape 67 , no. 11 , 2017, p. 21-25 .
  6. ↑ warmth . Renewable Energy Agency, accessed September 6, 2014.
  7. ↑ Advancing the energy transition . Press and Information Office of the Federal Government, September 1, 2014, accessed on September 6, 2014.
  8. ↑ Research radar : Energy transition in the heating sector. Meta-analysis on the development of heat and cold generation. 2 015
  9. ↑ Industry forecast for heat supply 2020 . German Renewable Energy Association (BEE), accessed on September 6, 2014.
  10. ↑ a b Scientists and BEE call for the heat transition . Bundesverband Erneuerbare Energie eV (BEE), August 24, 2014, accessed on September 6, 2014.
  11. ↑ a b Renewable Energies Heat Act Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, accessed on September 6, 2014.
  12. ↑ BMWi: Energy Efficiency Strategy Buildings - Paths to a Virtually Climate-Neutral Building Stock ( Memento of the original dated December 22, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , PDF  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.bmwi.de
  13. ↑ BEE: Energy efficiency strategy for buildings falls short for a change of course in heating policy Press release of November 17, 2015
  14. ^ Commission proposes new rules on gas and a heating and cooling strategy, 16 Feb 2016
  15. ↑ EU Commission wants production stop for oil and gas heating systems, February 16, 2016
  16. ↑ CO2 building renovation - energy-efficient construction and renovation ( Memento of the original from September 6, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Press and Information Office of the Federal Government, accessed on September 6, 2014. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.bundesregierung.de
  17. ↑ Heating with Renewable Energies BAFA, accessed on September 6, 2014.
  18. ↑ BEE: Federal government must further stimulate the heating transition, press release from September 5, 2015
  19. ↑ Energy tax with CO2 components plus redistribution creates fairness on the heating market , BEE, September 18, 2017
  20. ↑ Council of Economic Experts for Environmental Issues 2017. Change of direction required: Climate protection in the transport sector. Special report, especially p. 41 . Retrieved November 24, 2018.
  21. ↑ Andreas Püttner, Frank Musiol: Households can save hundreds of euros every year with renewable heat . Short study update 2009. Stuttgart, October 20102.
  22. ↑ Fossil fuels are the number one cost driver . AEE press release, November 12, 2013.
  23. ↑ Video Wiso: Avoid expensive heating costs  in the ZDFmediathek , accessed on January 26, 2014. (offline)
  24. ↑ Agency for Renewable Energy: Gas price determines the heat bill of the consumer. Press release, January 30, 2015