Members of KOGEN Polska and representatives from countries across Eastern Europe met in Warsaw on the 17th of September to discuss progress in the cogeneration sector

The meeting highlighted the significant existing use of cogeneration in the region which at 17% of existing electricity generation from cogeneration, is well ahead of the European average. Considerable untapped potential remains, particularly in district heating schemes not yet equipped with cogeneration.

The meeting heard how the existing infrastructure for district heating in several Member States offers a particularly good opportunity for modern cogeneration. The large infrastructural investment in district heating networks is a valuable asset to optimise the energy efficiency of electricity supply. By incorporating cogeneration in existing heat only district heating schemes, a minimum of 10% of the related primary energy can be saved and the need to build new stand alone power stations can be avoided. In Poland alone the opportunity to reduce the CO2 emissions through the wider use of cogeneration is upwards of 17 million tons in 2020 and depending on the final technology deployed could be as high as 60 million tons.

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Industry remains a significant area for potential expansion of cogeneration. While industry in Hungary is a substantial user of cogeneration and must be maintained, the use of cogeneration in industry in Poland and Slovenia should be more widely encouraged.

“The eastern region faces real fuel choices and challenges. Cogeneration is a fuel independent efficiency technology which offers energy savings on everything from coal to bio-energy.” said Fiona Riddoch, Managing Director of COGEN Europe “Even in Member States where the penetration of cogeneration is already high, such as in Eastern Europe, it is clear that more opportunity is being found.”

The workshop was hosted by KOGEN Poland and chaired by Jožef Stefan Institute. The meeting is one of three European Regional workshops taking place this month, gathering final input for the first European Cogeneration Potentials Report which will be published by the CODE project in October this year. The CODE project is independently monitoring the implementation of the Cogeneration Directive in Europe and will comment on Member States progress in promoting cogeneration.