A solution for the constantly increasing Cooling Demand

A solution for the constantly increasing Cooling Demand

The kick-off meeting of the new project CoolingDOWN was organised on November 18th, 2022, in Brussels and brought together the partners of the project (EGEC, SHE, UPV, Fh. IEG, RED, UNIPD, AFPG, JER, RGS).

The new three-year project, funded by the European Union, aims at unlocking the potential of renewable cooling for a decarbonised cooling sector fit for the climate of the 21st century.

This project keeps the emphasis on the need to increase the deployment of renewable cooling through solar and geothermal cooling, and not relying only on electricity.

This new project will give a better understanding of the demand and deployment of cooling solutions at the national and local levels. By analysing 5 European countries (Germany, Italy, France, Spain, and Romania) it will create a new economical and financial model to increase the uptake of integrated efficient and renewable cooling solutions.

Secretariat and roles

The role of the secretariat is to coordinate activities related to the policy recommendation and communication and dissemination of the project both at the European, national, and local levels.

The secretariat contributes to the structure of CoolingDOWN, by organising meetings, events, and relevant consultations, by assisting with the preparation of relevant documents to include RES cooling in the regulation, and providing clear recommendations to greatly increase the quality of reporting of the cooling sector under article 14 of the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) and within the National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs).

Solar Heat Europe’s role in the project is related to stakeholders’ engagement, including the European Solar Thermal Technology Panel, and the RHC-ETIP Horizontal Working for Industry.

Challenges and opportunities for the cooling sector

Due to climate change, each year, the demand for cooling increases in Europe. However, cooling is part of less than 5% of the current regulation. This means that it is necessary to increase the deployment of renewables in the cooling sector at a more accelerated pace, avoiding an additional burden on the energy sector that is already facing tremendous challenges in its transition from fossil fuels.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.