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

RenewableHeating & CoolingEuropean Technology PlatformStandardisation and quality assuranceThe market penetration of RHC technologies depends on the capacity of the EU industry toprovide innovative solutions, to gain the trust of consumers and to address information barriers.The market for heating and cooling systems is characterised by asymmetricinformation. Policies are required that ensure that prospective customers are provided withstandardised information about the technological solution that best meets thethermal energy needs of the individual building, district or industrial process. This is of specialimportance for small- and large-scale hybrid systems 79 . The market penetration of efficienthybrid systems could be supported by improving energy performance labels, which shouldbe required for all new heating and cooling systems in the EU by 2020. The informationprovided should not only include the relative efficiency, but also the annual running cost,greenhouse gas emissions and the expected system lifetime.Standardisation is needed to ensure quality to the market but should not becomean obstacle to the introduction of new products. In parallel with system development,new standards should be developed which are able to characterise not only the thermalperformance but also the quality and expected lifetime of a RHC application.The following priorities are identified:• Development of accelerated ageing tests for collectors and collector materials.• Standardised testing methods and assessment procedures for controller-dependentbehaviour of system components.• Elaboration of standards for the hydraulic and electrical interconnections of differentbuilding components.• Standardised electrical interfaces defined for the interconnection of different sensors andactuators to the control system.• A standard set of tests for hybrid systems should be developed to certify their thermal andelectrical efficiency and CO 2 emissions.• New labelling or certification standards need to be developed to evaluate and comparenew thermal energy storage materials and applications as they will become available onthe market.• Standardisation of the information provided to the consumer through improved energyperformance labels.79In fact in hybrid systems theefficiency of a single componentis of relative importanceand gives only limited informationon the performanceof the overall system. Inorder to support the marketpenetration of innovative andlow-emissions of hybrid systems,customers ought to betransparently informed on theefficiency of the entire systemand they should have the possibilityto compare systemswith different components ina direct way. Therefore standardisedtesting proceduresare needed and laboratoriesshould test energy systemsfollowing harmonised proceduresand cycles.80In many residential andnon-residential buildingsthose who pay the bill arenot the decision-makers oninfrastructure investments.Owners have to be encouragedto make the necessaryinvestments and to be ableto benefit from the measuresimplemented.Development of new business modelsRenewable energy technologies such as solar thermal and geothermal energy havelow running costs but require a high upfront investment. New business models mustbe developed to overcome the barrier of financing upfront costs. Measures to overcome the“owner-tenant dilemma” 80 are needed for the sector to reach its full potential, inparallel with innovative schemes for outsourcing technical and economic risks, andoffering further energy related services such as those offered by ESCOs.New strategies are needed for technology suppliers and stakeholders of related sectors(such as building owners) aiming at facilitating access to capital, financing of upfront costs,outsourcing technical and economic risks, and including the offer of energy related services.Innovative marketing strategies should be elaborated based on market research tostimulate the refurbishment of the existing building stock and heating systems with modernRHC technology.In the district heating and cooling sector, today’s business models are based on thequantity of heat or cold transported as the expansion of the grid has resulted in the ability toserve more customers. Tomorrow’s DHC business will be more complex, offeringa broader range of services that should be managed simultaneously, including storageand cooling, and the feed-in of heat or cold from the entities connected to its network.With the advent of low-energy houses, each customer will consume less heat. Moreover,some consumers will produce their own heat and will store or deliver their surplus to thethermal energy grid or directly to other buildings. All these aspects will lead to a new way ofoperating the networks, allowing less investment in the production side and a smootherdelivery flow, for the benefit of the energy system and its customers. The DHC industry willneed to adopt new business models to remain profitable even if less heat is sold.81