COGEN Europe welcomes the progresses made by the European Parliament on the micro-generation Resolution and publishes a new briefing paper on the topic
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The agreed text of the Micro-generation Resolution, stresses the need to give more attention to the untapped potential of small scale technologies to engage citizens and small businesses in producing their own power and heat in a sustainable and energy efficient way. COGEN Europe agrees that microgeneration technologies hold an important potential and points out that in the UK alone micro-CHP deployment can lead to emission reductions of around 4.1 million tonnes of CO2 per year in domestic and non-domestic buildings[4]. In addition, given the flexibility and controllability of micro-CHPs, technology providers are currently demonstrating how these technologies can be used to balance supply and demand in the electricity market with an increasing share of variable renewables (e.g. by clustering distributed generation installations such as micro-CHP in Virtual Power Plants).
Dr. Fiona Riddoch, Managing Director of COGEN Europe, reacted to the vote: “The benefits of micro-generation technologies, such as micro-CHP, need to be better understood at the national and local levels, in order to unlock their potential to deliver low-carbon, reliable and affordable heat and power to citizens. Today’s vote validates the importance of small scale technologies and the need to address some of the barriers to a faster up-take”.
COGEN Europe will continue to engage with policy makers on this initiative, which will be voted on in plenary on 9 September, while producing further evidence of micro-CHP added value for the European society.
For more information please contact:
Dr Fiona Riddoch, Managing Director
Tel: +32 2 772 8290
Fax: + 32 2 772 5044
Email: fiona.riddoch@cogeneurope.eu
Stefan Craenen, Communications Manager
Tel: +32 2 772 8290
Fax: + 32 2 772 5044
Email: stefan.craenen@cogeneurope.eu
About cogeneration:
Cogeneration (also known as CHP or Combined Heat and Power) involves the simultaneous production of heat and electricity from a single plant which results in massive savings to the economy of primary energy and consequential reductions of GHG emissions.
Today, a significant 11.7 % of Europe’s electricity is generated using a vast array of proven and cost effective techniques (cumulative capacity > 100 GWe). About half of the heat produced is used in district heating network while the remaining half serves industrial needs. Cogeneration units can be found in various sectors and sizes: in industries, households and tertiary buildings and in capacities ranging from a kilowatt to hundreds of MegaWatts electricity output. CHP plants can draw upon a wide range of energy sources, from traditional fossil fuels to renewable energies (combustion-based units with biomass, biogases or bioliquids, or steam-based plant connected to geothermal or concentrated solar panel installations) that make them ready to the future energy system.
Realising the identified economic potential for cogeneration in Europe –estimated at 110-120 GWe additional- will be instrumental to reaching our strategic climate and energy goals, while underpinning job creation and being an engine to industrial competitiveness.
About COGEN Europe:
COGEN Europe is the European association for the promotion of cogeneration. We represent 70 organisations which are National COGEN Associations, manufacturers, users, utilities and service companies. Currently around 100,000 Europeans are employed in the cogeneration sector. More info on www.cogeneurope.eu