ConnectHeat

Community engagement for clean heat

ConnectHeat project launched to unlock the potential of Energy Communities in Heating and Cooling



Energy Agency of Plovdiv is among the partners of the ConnectHeat project, that has received 1.5 million Euros in funding from the EU’s LIFE Programme and will run from October 2022 to September 2025, developing seven real pilot cases in different EU countries. Its full name is Community engagement for clean heat.

The ConnectHeat project kicked off in October to accelerate the decarbonisation of heating and cooling through an EU-wide implementation of citizen-led and energy community initiatives.

In a number of European countries, energy communities have been an active part of the transformation process of their energy systems for years. In Bulgaria, the construction of a legal framework for their establishment and functioning is going to be laid down. As a concept, the energy community represents an association of citizens, municipalities, institutions and companies with the aim of producing energy from renewable energy sources that will serve for the community needs.

“Even though community energy is a proved and effective approach to foster green energy transition, unfortunately its potential remains untapped in the heating and cooling sector. ConnectHeat is the first European initiative to develop heating and cooling communities in Europe, putting public authorities and citizens at the heart of energy transitions’’ say Riccardo Battisti and Chiara Lazzari, both Senior Project Managers at Ambiente Italia, and coordinators of ConnectHeat.

Heating and cooling account for roughly 50% of EU energy consumption from which more than 75% come from fossil fuels. Renewable and clean heating and cooling is a key enabler for a sustainable energy transition towards decarbonisation and energy autonomy in the current energy crisis. Increasing energy efficiency and sustainability of this sector is necessary to achieve the ambitious targets the EU has set within its European Green Deal and recent REPowerEU plan, the most prominent one being climate neutrality by 2050.

Local and regional public authorities are well positioned to drive the green transition of heating and cooling thanks to their proximity to citizens and territories. Through the implementation of effective heating and cooling decarbonisation strategies including community energy, they can significantly support Europe on its path to becoming the first climate-neutral continent.

In Bulgaria, energy communities already exist and use renewable sources to produce thermal energy for their own consumption. An example of such a community is the association of owners of a heated multi-family residential building, who, in order to reduce energy costs, have invested in the construction of a solar installation for the pre-heating of domestic hot water, before its inclusion in the subscriber station.

Coordinated by Ambiente Italia, the ConnectHeat multidisciplinary consortium is composed of 10 partners from all over Europe:


• Ambiente Italia S.r.l. (Italy)

• Regionalna energetska agencija sjeverozapadne Hrvatske (Croatia)

• Fédération européenne des agences et des régions pour l'énergie et l'environnement (Belgium)

• Steinbeis Innovation gGmbH (Germany)

• Euroheat & Power AISBL (Belgium)

• Agenzia per l'Energia del Friuli Venezia Giulia (Italy)

• Energy Agency of Plovdiv (Bulgaria)

• Intercommunale Leiedal (Belgium)

• Instituto Tecnológico de Canarias, S.A. (Spain)

• Agência Regional de Energia e Ambiente do Oeste – Oeste Sustentável (Portugal)

Contact

Project coordinators

Riccardo Battisti and Chiara Lazzari, Ambiente Italia S.r.l.

riccardo.battisti@ambienteitalia.it; chiara.lazzari@ambienteitalia.it


Press and media inquiries

Martin Stroleny, Euroheat & Power AISBL

ms@euroheat.org


ConnectHeat website: www.connectheat.ambienteitalia.it/

Energy Agency of Plovdiv

За повече информация, разгледайте нашата брошура: Корпоративна брошура Енергийна Агенция - Пловдив


Latest News and Events ConnectHeat

  • Image ConnectHeat – Project for Unlocking the Potential of the Energy Communities in Heating and Cooling. Achieved Results and Upcoming Actions

    The final national ConnectHeat workshop will be held on June 17th during which the Energy Agency of Plovdiv will present the achievements in the work phases of its pilot case "Energy Community for Heating and Cooling", as well as the established partnership with already founded and operating energy communities in Bulgaria.



    Read more
    Date:  14:32 11-06-2025
  • Image The concept of thermal energy communities and the project ConnectHeat were presented at the Regional Conference "Bulgarian and European Smart Cities Together “

    The event took place at the end of April and also marked the 25th Anniversary of the Energy Agency of Plovdiv establishment.



    Read more
    Date:  17:59 15-05-2025
  • Image The project ConnectHeat organizes the webinar “The warmth of cooperation: Heating and cooling communities for the Balkans” on 15th of May

    The session will explore how heating and cooling communities can be a key driver for the energy transition in the Balkans. There will be presented examples and proven tools for the development of such communities.



    Read more
    Date:  23:35 04-05-2025
  • Image The ConnectHeat project was presented at the National Conference of Energy Agencies

    The 18th edition of the National Conference of the Association of the Bulgarian Energy Agencies was held in Sofia on November 13 and 14. The topics such as: energy communities; energy efficiency increase in multi-family and single-family residential buildings; involvement of citizens in the energy transition through one-stop-shops; the effects of national decarbonization policies at the local level: positive results and untapped opportunities were introduced during the event.



    Read more
    Date:  17:16 20-11-2024

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