COGEN Europe Position Paper

Micro-CHP is the state-of-the-art energy supply solution for European homes and small businesses, already delivering today in its journey to the energy system of the future. Putting the cogeneration principle to use for citizens and small businesses creates a new relationship between them and the energy market. The merits of this flexible, controllable, energy efficient technology need to be better recognised through an appropriate policy structure so that it can contribute fully to the EU2020 objectives and beyond.


The residential and commercial [1]sectors are currently responsible for 40% of final energy consumption and 36% of total carbon emissions in the EU [2]. The European Commission scenarios show that significant energy savings and emission reductions are needed in the residential and commercial sectorsif the EU is to reach its 2020 and more long term climate and energy objectives. Against this backdrop, electricity demand is expected to significantly increase, doubling itsshare in final energy demand by 2050 [3], which will raise the profile of security of supply issues related to electricity. The integration of variable renewable electricity sources is important in this context, as large scale intermittent renewables cannot be relied upon to react to peak demand, leading to a mismatch in supply and demand, and the inevitable volatility in pricing.
Micro-CHP can contribute to EU’s energy and climate objectives with respect to delivering low-carbon heat and power to citizens and small businesses, as it generates both heat and electricity in domestic and commercial buildings exactly at the time they are needed. As a controllable technology, Micro-CHP can balance the electricity grid and help the integration of variable renewable energies. Micro-CHP is recognised at the EU level in legislation such as the Energy Efficiency Directive 2012/27/EU and the Eco-design and Energy Labelling Directives implementing measures, the implementation of which will be crucial in reaching EU’s 2020 objectives.


COGEN Europe Position Paper

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