Local Heat Strategy Progression in North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), Germany's most populous state, is making significant strides in heat planning, with a focus on sustainable heating solutions and community-driven initiatives. The progress is facilitated by state initiatives and targeted funding programs, as well as comprehensive support from NRW.Energy4Climate.
### Active Heat Planning in NRW Municipalities Municipalities across NRW are actively engaged in heat planning, with pilot projects such as Cologne's deep geothermal drilling project underway. This project aims to assess geothermal heat potential at depths of 600 to 1,000 meters, with the goal of using this resource for district heating by mid-2026.
In addition to geothermal energy, there is a focus on networked heat supply solutions developed by community groups, including homeowners' associations and public institutions, fostering neighborhood-level heating concepts.
### Support Offered by NRW.Energy4Climate NRW.Energy4Climate, a key player in NRW's climate protection efforts, offers a range of support for heat planning and sustainable heating measures. This includes financial subsidies to accelerate the installation of geothermal heat pumps, funding programs for diverse heating solutions, and educational resources to assist municipalities in heat planning.
The subsidies for geothermal heat pumps have seen significant increases, with incentives rising from €5 to €35 per meter for new buildings and from €10 to €50 per meter for existing buildings. The funding programs cover a wide range of heating solutions, from educational programs for municipalities to support for geothermal heat use and the encouragement of using wastewater heat.
### The Current Status of Heat Planning in NRW Municipalities Two-thirds of municipalities work closely with their local utilities or another local energy supplier. Renewable energies like environmental heat, wastewater, waste heat, or geothermal energy have great potential in NRW for heat supply.
In this year's survey, 112 of the total 396 cities and municipalities in NRW participated and provided information to the state company about the status of their heat planning. The majority of participating municipalities are already in the process of heat planning.
The NRW Heat Planning Act, which is about to be passed by the state parliament, will require municipalities to coordinate the exchange with all stakeholders, such as energy suppliers, housing industry, or citizen energy cooperatives. The planning must be completed by 2026 for larger municipalities and by 2028 for smaller ones.
The NRW Heat Planning Act is planned to be enacted this year, providing a fixed sum of €165,000 plus €1.36 per inhabitant for the initial setup of the municipal heat plan.
### Summary These coordinated efforts demonstrate NRW’s commitment to facilitating the energy transition by advancing heat planning and promoting renewable heat sources like geothermal energy, backed by strong financial and educational support from NRW.Energy4Climate. For more information, visit [NRW.Energy4Climate's website](https://www.energy4climate.nrw/kommunen/kompetenzzentrum-waermewende-nrw).
[1] Information provided is original content from NRW.Energy4Climate GmbH, transmitted through news aktuell. [2] Press contact: Alexandra Hahn, email: [email protected], tel.: 0211-8220 864-88, mobile: 0152 5157 8693.
- North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) is focusing on sustainable heating solutions for its heat planning, with community-driven initiatives and pilot projects such as Cologne's deep geothermal drilling project, aiming to use geothermal heat for district heating by mid-2026.
- NRW.Energy4Climate, a key player in NRW's climate protection efforts, offers financial subsidies and educational resources to accelerate the installation of geothermal heat pumps, fund diverse heating solutions, and assist municipalities in heat planning.
- Two-thirds of NRW municipalities work with local utilities or energy suppliers, and renewable energies like geothermal, wastewater, waste heat, or environmental heat have great potential for heat supply in NRW.
- The NRW Heat Planning Act, which provides funding and mandates heat planning coordination among stakeholders, is planned to be passed this year, offering financial incentives for municipalities to transition towards renewable heat sources like geothermal energy.
