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

8Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda for Renewable Heating & CoolingResearch capacities and non-technological issuesThese new models must support the integration of strategic thinking and sustainability objectivesin decision making processes (e.g. by incentivising energy savings, delivering capacityand flexibility vs. delivering energy, etc.).Effective public support policiesEconomic and non-economic barriers hampering the uptake of RHC in the buildingsector can be tackled by effective support policies. For renewable energy technologies thatcannot yet compete with conventional fossil fuel alternatives, effective and stableeconomic incentive schemes are required. Lack of information is another barrier thatcan be addressed by increasing awareness of the RHC potential under specific climateconditions and for specific applications. A wide experience exists with several types of policyinstruments but analysis of the effectiveness of policy measures to encourageRHC deployment is still inadequate. Evaluation studies are needed to assess how supportpolicies can be most effective.There are good examples of measures to support the development and deployment of smartthermal systems, including DHC, and thereby attain both economic and environmentalbenefits. Unfortunately, few of the regulatory approaches that theory predicts and practicehas shown to be effective in promoting DH networks are currently in force. Research is neededto understand why. The answer may lie in a conflict between the needs of local, regional andnational energy systems. In the same way it is of great importance to study how policyframeworks and instruments should be designed to stimulate and support an extensionof sustainable thermal systems.Some markets are already implementing specific “renewable obligations” schemessince several years (e.g. solar thermal obligation) with high success. These mandatorymeasures have the advantage of being “cost neutral” for the implementing publicauthority. Moreover, renewable energy solutions are taken into consideration from the verybeginning of the planning process, allowing a better integration in terms of technical,architectural and economic impact.Sustainability and public perception of biomass based heating and coolingEven though the on-going debate about potential negative environmental, social and economicimpacts has mainly targeted biofuels for transport, the same sustainability issues arealso relevant for biomass based heating and cooling. It is therefore important to establishsuitable sustainability certification schemes to maximise positive impacts such as GHGemission reductions, energy security, employment generation, and rural development andto ensure that biomass based heating and cooling has an overall positive impact comparedto the use of fossil fuels. Ensuring sustainability can thereby contribute to a positive perceptionof the European public and highlight the societal benefits of bioenergy which is essentialfor successful future market development.82