Interconnection of the electricity and heating sectors to support the energy transition in cities

The electricity, heating, and transport sectors in urban areas all have to contribute to meeting stringent climate targets. Cities will face a transition from fossil fuels to renewable sources, with electricity acting as a cross-sectorial energy carrier. Consequently, the electricity demand of citie...

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Main Authors: Verena Heinisch, Lisa Göransson, Mikael Odenberger, Filip Johnsson
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Aalborg University Press 2019-10-01
Series:International Journal of Sustainable Energy Planning and Management
Online Access:https://journals.aau.dk/index.php/sepm/article/view/3328
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spelling doaj-e6f7420dfdd0489cb9f18550b7cf603d2021-03-18T11:55:35ZengAalborg University PressInternational Journal of Sustainable Energy Planning and Management2246-29292246-29292019-10-012410.5278/ijsepm.33282777Interconnection of the electricity and heating sectors to support the energy transition in citiesVerena Heinisch0Lisa GöranssonMikael OdenbergerFilip JohnssonChalmers, University of TechnologyThe electricity, heating, and transport sectors in urban areas all have to contribute to meeting stringent climate targets. Cities will face a transition from fossil fuels to renewable sources, with electricity acting as a cross-sectorial energy carrier. Consequently, the electricity demand of cities is expected to rise, in a situation that will be exacerbated by ongoing urbanisation and city growth. As the supply of electricity to cities is limited by transmission capacity from the national grid, city planning requires a detailed understanding of the options available for: decentralised electricity generation; synergies between the heating and electricity sectors; and flexibility through energy storage technologies. This work proposes an optimisation model that interconnects the electricity, heat, and transport sectors in cities. We analyse the investments in and operation of an urban energy system, using the City of Gothenburg as an example. We find that the availability of electricity from local solar PV together with thermal storage technologies increase the value of using power-to-heat technologies, such as heat pumps. High biomass prices together with strict climate targets enhance the importance of electricity in the district heating sector. At low biomass prices, CHP units fired by biomass are utilized over the whole model year. The model will be developed further in future studies, to include details on electric vehicle charging and other energy carriers.https://journals.aau.dk/index.php/sepm/article/view/3328
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Verena Heinisch
Lisa Göransson
Mikael Odenberger
Filip Johnsson
spellingShingle Verena Heinisch
Lisa Göransson
Mikael Odenberger
Filip Johnsson
Interconnection of the electricity and heating sectors to support the energy transition in cities
International Journal of Sustainable Energy Planning and Management
author_facet Verena Heinisch
Lisa Göransson
Mikael Odenberger
Filip Johnsson
author_sort Verena Heinisch
title Interconnection of the electricity and heating sectors to support the energy transition in cities
title_short Interconnection of the electricity and heating sectors to support the energy transition in cities
title_full Interconnection of the electricity and heating sectors to support the energy transition in cities
title_fullStr Interconnection of the electricity and heating sectors to support the energy transition in cities
title_full_unstemmed Interconnection of the electricity and heating sectors to support the energy transition in cities
title_sort interconnection of the electricity and heating sectors to support the energy transition in cities
publisher Aalborg University Press
series International Journal of Sustainable Energy Planning and Management
issn 2246-2929
2246-2929
publishDate 2019-10-01
description The electricity, heating, and transport sectors in urban areas all have to contribute to meeting stringent climate targets. Cities will face a transition from fossil fuels to renewable sources, with electricity acting as a cross-sectorial energy carrier. Consequently, the electricity demand of cities is expected to rise, in a situation that will be exacerbated by ongoing urbanisation and city growth. As the supply of electricity to cities is limited by transmission capacity from the national grid, city planning requires a detailed understanding of the options available for: decentralised electricity generation; synergies between the heating and electricity sectors; and flexibility through energy storage technologies. This work proposes an optimisation model that interconnects the electricity, heat, and transport sectors in cities. We analyse the investments in and operation of an urban energy system, using the City of Gothenburg as an example. We find that the availability of electricity from local solar PV together with thermal storage technologies increase the value of using power-to-heat technologies, such as heat pumps. High biomass prices together with strict climate targets enhance the importance of electricity in the district heating sector. At low biomass prices, CHP units fired by biomass are utilized over the whole model year. The model will be developed further in future studies, to include details on electric vehicle charging and other energy carriers.
url https://journals.aau.dk/index.php/sepm/article/view/3328
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AT filipjohnsson interconnectionoftheelectricityandheatingsectorstosupporttheenergytransitionincities
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