Finnish Energy Industries
Press release
For publication 20 January 2010 10 a.m.
20.1.2010 10 am

District heating year 2010

District heat sales reach all-time record
Use of natural gas and peat increased, coal decreased

Finnish Energy Industries’ figures show that district heat sales rose last year by more than ten per cent on the year before. Consumption was up particularly due to colder weather conditions than in previous years, but also with connection of new customers to district heating networks during the year. Adjusted for temperature, district heat consumption grew by less than one per cent. District heat sales over the year totalled 35.8 billion kilowatt hours (TWh), with a monetary value of EUR 1.97 billion.

Residential properties accounted for 55 per cent of the district heat sales. At the end of the year, there were 1.25 million residential properties with district heating, with about 2.6 million people living in buildings with district heating.

Most public buildings are connected to district heating networks. Almost half of the heating energy requirement for all our buildings comes from district heating. In the largest cities, more than 90 per cent of the heating energy requirement of the buildings is covered by district heating. 

District heat and power cogeneration increased

Last year, the volume of district heat produced was 38.7 TWh. This is ten per cent more than the previous year. The volume of combined district heat and power generation grew from the previous year by 10.5%, standing at 27.3 TWh. The share of cogeneration was 71 per cent of total district heat production. Separate production of heat only covered 29 per cent of the total production. The share of separate production increased because during the coldest periods, peak-load heating plants are operated to cover short-term peak capacity requirements. In 2010, there were considerably more of these cold spells throughout the winter period than in the previous year.

The volume of CHP electricity was 17.4 TWh. This was about 14 per cent more than the year before. In combined heat and power generation, a third of the fuel quantity is saved compared to when they are produced separately. The emissions are reduced proportionally.

Carbon emissions up due to increased consumption

Carbon dioxide emissions from district heat generation were 7.9 million tonnes, increasing on the previous year by over 12 per cent. The bulk of the growth was due to higher production volumes. The average emission was 205 g per produced kilowatt hour, which is almost level with the year before.

Natural gas still most important fuel

Natural gas was used to generate 35 per cent of the district heat and CHP electricity. The share was up by one percentage point on the previous year. The share of coal was 23 per cent. Its use fell by more than two percentage points. The share of peat increased by 1.5 per cent to 18 per cent. The use of wood and wood residue and other domestic renewable energy sources, such as biogas and secondary heat from industry, increased, but their share remained at the level of the previous year, or 18 per cent. Oil was used to produce five per cent of the district heating.

Mean price of district heat fell

The mean price of district heat, including the energy fee and power charge, was 5.51 cents per kilowatt hour. The mean price fell by two per cent from the year before, although the value-added tax included in the price rose in the summer by one percentage point.

Taxes make up about 23 per cent of the price of district heat. Generally, the principal factor influencing the price level is the size of the district heating system. In large conurbations, district heating is cogenerated economically with electricity. Other factors contributing to the price level of district heating include the fuels used, age of the plant, structure of the conurbation, efficiency of investments, and the owner’s requirements with regard to returns.

Reliability of district heat supply excellent

A district heat customer is likely to have his heating supply disrupted for 1.5 hours a year on average. The reliability of district heat supply is 99.98 per cent. The outages are caused by system breakdowns and repairing them. The work of connecting new clients to the network and moving pipelines in conjunction with roadworks may also cause supply interruptions. Most of the supply interruptions are planned, i.e. the clients are notified in advance. 

Reliability of supply is excellent in Finland, even during spells of hardest frosts. Heating outages caused by faults in technical equipment usually affect a very limited number of customers, and they are brief. The high security of supply is the result of systematic quality control, upkeep and preventive maintenance.

The district heating production capacity totals about 20,000 megawatts (MW). The maximum output requirement of clients connected to the district heating networks is about 17,300 MW.

Additional information:
Mirja Tiitinen, Adviser, Tel. +358 (0)50 434 6994
Jari Kostama, Director, Tel. +358 (0)50 301 1870

www.energia.fi
http://www.kaukolampo.fi/
 

Attachment	Date	Size
district_heating_2010.ppt (ppt)	09.03.2011	201 KB