Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda for Renewable ... - EGEC

8Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda for Renewable Heating & CoolingResearch capacities and non-technological issuesThe Renewable Heating and Cooling sector’s objectives fully match those of theEuropean Commission’s Innovation Union and Europe 2020 strategy 77 . These objectives aimat increasing European R&D, as well as stepping up the emphasis on innovation in energyand climate change related technologies. This will improve the competitivenessof both European products and companies not only in our internal market but also ona global scale. As shown in this document, research and innovation are pivotal to the creationof new products/services that generate growth and jobs, thus helping to address socialchallenges. The RHC sector will bring integrated solutions, of new and clean energyapplications that will be used in Smart Cities, in nearly zero-energy buildings, inindustry or agriculture. For that purpose, it is important to provide the means, bothtechnical and human, for the EU to develop innovations in the RHC sector, creating apool of knowledge and competence to foster the competiveness and attractivenessof the R&D work performed in Europe.8.1 Research infrastructure for RHCThe strategic development of a research infrastructure for renewable heating andcooling is essential to promoting the development of RHC solutions in Europe. This entailsexploring synergies between the different technologies comprised in the RHC sector,reinforcing and further developing a competence pool, enhancing cooperation betweenMember States and public - private R&D activities, managing existing know-how andfacilitating a network of research infrastructures.Strengthening research infrastructureTaking into account the diverse sectors involved in RHC, one of the main priorities isto forge a stronger collaboration or even integration between existing facilities working onRHC R&D at European and/or national level. After exploring the synergies created by suchcollaboration, it will be possible to identify the additional needs for multidisciplinary researchfacilities. While some facilities can originate from existing ones, upgraded to supportR&D for other RHC technologies; some new facilities can be set up to complement or replaceolder ones.Taking into account that RHC technologies are mostly small scale, with productiondistributed across Europe, research facilities should ideally also be spread around Europe,attracting and retaining talent away from the main conurbations, thus remaining cost-effectiveand manageable. The uniqueness of the RHC sector allows for such specificities. Thediversity of competences required must be well considered and an equilibrium found betweentechnologies (solar, biomass, geothermal), cross-cutting needs (hybrid systems, thermalstorage, large scale systems and district heating) and experimental or testing facilities, forinstance. Industrial process heat generation, hybrid systems and thermal storage are someof the areas where current research infrastructure is inadequate.Cross-sector collaboration and networking activitiesDecarbonising the heating and cooling sector is a challenging policy objective due to the largenumber of individual decision makers and also to the fact that the industry is diverse andfragmented. Well-organised networking activities at European level are essential to stimulatecooperation between research institutes and industry and, in parallel, between differentregions (cross-border and cross-sector collaboration). This can result in aneffective knowledge transfer among RHC research and innovation performers, which willreinforce European cooperation and facilitate technology development. For instance,a combined approach on both the demand and the supply side is required to integrateRHC technologies into the construction process and logistics chain. This is why public interventionis needed at EU level to foster collaboration and networking between RHC expertsand stakeholders of relevant disciplines such as architecture, urban planning,or construction. Moreover, further collaboration with energy intensive industries (suchas pulp and paper, glass and metals) should be established to develop new low-carbon solutionsfor process heat.77European Commission(2012c).78