7 November 2024
Dear Chair and Members of Klima-, Energi- og Forsyningsudvalget
Re.: Åbent ekspertmøde om Termonet (Open expert hearing on thermonet)
The European Geothermal Energy Council (EGEC) and the European Federation of Energy
Communities (REScoop.eu) represent the entire value chain of the European geothermal, local
authority and energy community sectors.
We are concerned about the Danish government’s proposal to deny networked geothermal (also
known as thermonets or 5
th
generation district heating and cooling networks – 5GDHC-networks)
access to municipal loan guarantees by deciding to not let the technology be part of the Heat
Supply Act in Danish law. This would inhibit and delay an important local, cost-effective and
increasingly popular means of accelerating the energy transition for citizens, their energy
communities, and municipalities, especially in rural areas. It would be a significant setback for
Denmark’s green transition and create inequality of opportunities for rural areas. Moreover, it
could have significant negative ramifications across the rest of Europe as other countries seek to
support renewable heating infrastructure, including both conventional district heating and
5GDHC, often with Denmark as a lighthouse example.
In recent times European institutions have applied political pressure to give both deep and
shallow geothermal energy greater visibility and support in relation to district heating.
The European Parliament
1
called for a European geothermal strategy and industrial alliance to
create a shallow and deep geothermal market to aid municipal governments, energy utilities and
energy communities to convert to geothermal. Paragraph 2 of the resolution stresses “the
potential of the ubiquitous low-temperature, shallow geothermal resources that are available in
all Member States”.
Paragraph 9 “Stresses
that the greatest potential of geothermal energy use in
the EU lies in district heating and cooling systems and networks of shallow geothermal
installations”.
Furthermore, Paragraph 32 calls on the member states to explore financial de-
risking solutions for the initial project phase and construction phase of geothermal projects.
1
European Parliament (2024) Geothermal energy. P9_TA(2024)0049
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/TA-9-2024-0049_EN.html;