District Heating and Economy of Scale

Abstract

A tendency in the market favors electricity generation from renewable resources. Low and medium enthalpy geothermal resources are thus often modelled for electricity generation before investigating the possibility of direct use. The objective is to investigate and show for reference the economy of scale for Geothermal District Heating Systems (GDHS). For the purpose of this article the investigation is framed into four scenarios: - Well(s) and a distribution system in place - Well(s) in place but not distribution system - Distribution system in place but no well(s) - Neither well(s) nor distribution system in place There are unutilized geothermal wells that produce geothermal water at temperatures ideal for GDHS. The most common obstacles considered are the lack of distribution system to customers and a small locally bound market. This article presents the minimum requirements for a potential GDHS project investment to become feasible during its lifetime based on market size and population for each scenario mentioned above. In certain areas grants are available for GDHS development. Furthermore the harnessing of the geothermal energy and the development of the distribution systems can be viewed as separate projects. These projects can be subject to separate grant schemes. The feasibility of the projects will be estimated with and without grants.