Heat and electricity load changes and local system independence in future Swedish energy communities

Peer-reviewed paper 5-006-26

In 2019, the EU adopted the Clean Energy for all Europeans package mandating all member states to promote the establishment of energy communities. In Sweden, energy communities commonly focus on allowing neighbors to share locally produced electricity. Increased electricity self-consumption and independence from distribution grids are often strived for. This might encourage an electrification of building heat supply. Currently, about half of the heat demand in Swedish buildings is supplied by district heating. District heating systems enable utilization of low-value energy resources, such as waste heat from industry, power generation and waste incineration. Reduced utilization of these sources could lead to a less resource-efficient overall energy system. Furthermore, a vast initiation of electricity-based energy communities could decrease the competitiveness of district heating. The impact of energy communities on district heating systems thus needs to be investigated. In this study, a virtual testbed for a Swedish energy community is developed to assess different local technical solutions for energy supply, storage and demand. With this testbed, the impact of different energy communities on heat and electricity loads is investigated. The results show that energy communities with decentral energy supply, such as heat pumps and photovoltaics, will significantly decrease or eliminate the demand for conventional district heating, but simultaneously might strain overlaying power grids. Community district heating systems can enable high self-sufficiency, but conventional district heating might be required occasionally. Furthermore, communities based on energy efficiency measures potentially reduce local heat demands and enable lower temperatures for heat supply in buildings.