The rollout of district heating in Denmark is stagnating, according to an analysis from Dansk Fjernvarme. Since January 2022, 70,000 gas boilers have been phased out in Denmark.
In 4 out of 5 cases, this is because the home has district heating. But the pace cannot continue as long as there are political doubts about whether the government intends to maintain the goal of phasing out private gas boilers by 2035, according to Dansk Fjernvarme.
In 2023-2024, projects for 33,000 private gas customers have been cancelled due to poor project economics or lack of connection
Therefore, they have now published a proposal with five proposals to accelerate the phasing out of gas boilers:
- Notice of closure of the gas network in approved district heating areas
- Socioeconomic municipal heating plans
- Notice of closure of the gas network in areas with potential for district heating
- Requirement for socio-economic aspects in project proposals is lifted
- Shutdown of local gas networks by municipal heating plan
- There is still natural gas in the pipeline network, and if we are to completely remove it from space heating, it requires It is a renewed focus on the goals in the climate agreement from 2022, which should give homeowners a clear message so that we can phase out fossil gas in space heating, says Kim Mortensen, director of Dansk Fjernvarme.
The Danish Parliament will talk about it in 2026
The industry organization has repeatedly criticized the lack of political will to set an end date for the phasing out of gas boilers for private heating. The same has been said by mayors from 25 municipalities and a broad alliance from the energy sector.
Letters to the Minister of Climate, Energy and Utilities
Mayors' letters to the Minister
During 2024, 25 mayors have sent letters to the Minister of Climate, Energy and Utilities with calls to:
- reaffirm the political agreement on the full phasing out of gas for home heating in 2035.
- that there should be no doubt among the Danes that the government is determined to phase out gas.
- that there is a need to send a clear and distinct political signal that it is not possible to remain on individual gas heating, despite the fact that the remaining gas had to be green at some point.
The municipalities are Dragør, Esbjerg, Vejen, Vejle, Tårnby, Odense, Nordfyns, Hedensted, Stevns, Gribskov, Varde, Køge, Slagelse, Næstved, Vordingborg, Lejre, Holbæk, Kalundborg, Roskilde, Middelfart, Sønderborg, Fredericia, Rudersdal, Helsingør and Allerød.
A unified sector
In the spring of 2024, a broad alliance sent a letter to the Minister of Climate, Energy and Utilities asking:
- to clearly announce to Danish gas boiler owners that the end date for gas for space heating is 2035 at the latest
- to give Evida the authority to disconnect, after which all gas customers in the country will receive a notice of closure of the gas network.
The senders were Dansk Fjernvarme, Green Power Denmark, Concito, the Council for Green Transition, Synergi, Tekniq-Arbejdsgiverne, Intelligent Energy and the Heat Pump Industry.
Source: Dansk Fjernvarme
The latest Climate Projection estimates that there will be 94,000 gas boilers in Denmark in 2035. In comparison, there are currently approximately 274,000 private gas consumers in Denmark. The decline predicted by the Climate Projection is difficult for Dansk Fjernvarme to imagine.
"If we are to get anywhere near this ambition, it requires further and targeted efforts with renewed planning, a clear message about the future heat supply and an easier rollout of district heating," writes Kim Mortensen, director of Dansk Fjernvarme in udspelt.
To TV2 , Minister of Climate, Energy and Utilities, Lars Aagaard, says that the task of the municipalities is to inform citizens that there is a possibility of establishing district heating in places where it makes economic sense.
- Only in 2026 will we in the Folketing discuss how we will reach the goal of a full phasing out of gas by 2035. Until that is in place, the municipalities must make sure to make it clear to citizens whether district heating will be available at an attractive price or not, the minister tells the media.
The minister does not confirm to the media that the municipalities can tell citizens that gas will be phased out by 2035, but instead says that "the municipalities can rely on the fact that we will discuss the path to that goal in 2026."
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