State of Green Denmark

How do you create a cost-effective, secure and sustainable heat transition? Well, you need a plan. A heat plan. 🔥 Though it may sound simple, heat planning is a key first step to enable the much need tranformation of our heat supplies. Heating accounts for more than 40 percent of global energy-related CO2 emissions, and the energy crisis of recent years has exposed the vulnerability of individual, single-source heating solutions. Yet, in many countries, a clear link between national energy policies and local heat planning has been missing—until now. In the latest Sound of Green episode, we explore how decades of Danish experiences with heat planning and district heating are being disseminated and tell the story of the value they’ve already created just south of the Danish border. The story is told by: 🎙️ Toke Liengaard, Advisor and Team Leader at Energistyrelsen 🎙️ Volker Kienzlen, Managing Director at KEA Klimaschutz- und Energieagentur Baden-Württemberg GmbH (KEA-BW) 🎙️ Markus Lempp, Head of International Policy, Markets and Energy Economics at Danfoss The episode is now available on your go-to podcast platform and at: https://lnkd.in/dBJVrSgT

As we continue our wrap up of 2024, our most read case of the year is.... Ramboll's solution on the decarbonisation of Poland’s district heating networks, which was published as part of the Royal visit to Poland in the beginning of the year. District heating has been a well covered topic at State of Green throughout 2024, with both a launch of our district heating publication and a brand new podcast episode on the subject, which was released earlier this month. Re-read the most popular solution here:

We are wrapping up 2024 with a look back on our most popular content of the year 📰💥 Beginning with the most read news of 2024, which was the historic green tripartite agreement announcing the world's first climate tax on agriculture, announced back in November. Revisit the news here:

From American senators to Namibian officials. Sector coupling, district heating, wastewater and everything in between. 2024 has been a year marked by thousands of visitors, countless publications, new partnerships, and plenty of international interest in Danish green solutions. In this year's last edition of State of Green Weekly, we wrap up 2024 by looking back at some of the best moments from the green state of Denmark.

As if a publication on district heating wasn't enough, I now also have a podcast episode to plug. 🎧 Our last Sound of Green episode of the year gives an introduction to the importance of heat planning. While it sounds almost banal, it is hard to overstate the need for heat planning in the green transition of our heat supplies and energy systems. Luckily, it seems that the rest of Europe is slowly but surely catching onto what Denmark has know to be true for five decades: cost-efficient, reliable and increasingly green heating infrastructure requires long-term planning and engagement at the local level. Exciting things will happen on the Sound of Green feed in 2025, and I look forward to sharing new formats and stories from Benjamin Bonnevie and myself. Thanks to everyone who has contributed and listened to the podcast this past year. It's pretty cool to see that what started out as our little passion project is now growing both in reach and engagement with each episode. 💚

5 ways district energy is powering the cities of tomorrow⚡️   As cities worldwide tackle the challenges of the energy transition, district energy has the potential to transform urban energy systems and pave the way for greener societies.   We have gathered five cases from Denmark’s district energy transformation showcasing how: 🔹 Smart “flexumers” in Copenhagen align energy consumption with renewable sources. 🔹 Seawater cooling cuts energy usage in Copenhagen by 80%. 🔹 Waste-to-energy at Amager Bakke supplies power and heat to 150,000 homes and captures CO2 emissions. 🔹 Renewable district heating in Hvide Sande keeps costs low and efficiency high. 🔹 Seasonal heat storage bridges the gap between renewable energy production and winter demand in Denmark’s capital region.   Read more and discover the cases: https://lnkd.in/dfg2wskR  Or download our full white paper on district energy: https://lnkd.in/dKz4wbMt

A Week of Ups, COPs, and (Cool) Downs 🌱 The past week has been marked by both setbacks and progress in Denmark’s climate journey: 🔹 The highly anticipated North Sea offshore wind tender ended without a single bid—a stark reminder of the complexities in advancing the green transition. 🔹 On a more collaborative note, public and private partners of the COP29 Denmark Pavilion gathered for a "COP29 Cool Down" meeting, where Lars Aagaard set his sights on COP30. Read more about this week’s Danish climate news in this edition of State of Green Weekly by our Head of Press, Simone Falcon.

Exploring the climate solutions in the agrifood sector 🌾 Today, Landbrug & Fødevarer hosted an event at House of Green, gathering representatives from over 25 international Embassies in Denmark. The goal was to share insights and solutions for advancing global climate action in agriculture and food production. The timing could not be better, with the historic Green Tripartite Agreement reached just weeks ago. The agreement will initiate the largest transformation of the Danish landscape in over 100 years, with approximately EUR 5.76 billion allocated to reshaping land use and advancing efforts in biodiversity, climate action and water quality. Highlights from the afternoon include: 🔹Public-private insigths: Presentations on the opportunities in the green transition by the Landbrug & Fødevarer and State of Green Denmark. 🔹Policy perspectives: Updates from the Ministeriet for Grøn Trepart and the Klima-, Energi- og Forsyningsministeriet on policy developments. 🔹Business leadership: Inspiring business cases from Arla Foods, Stiesdal, ALGIECEL and Green Farm showcasing the future business solutions and innovation in action. The event concludes with engaging discussions, networking and a shared commitment to driving tangible climate solutions. Read more about the Green Tripartite Agreement here: https://lnkd.in/d6F_dZTE

Upon a tough last week for Denmark's wind industry, let’s not forget some of the success stories from across the Danish wind value chain: Europe’s biggest wind turbines to be raised in Østerild test centre 🎐 Last week, components for the largest wind turbine in Europe to date were transported from Siemens Gamesa's factory to the Østerild Test Centre in Jutland. Standing over 300 metres tall from base to blade tip, and with a 130-metre-long blades attached to a nacelle measuring 11 by 11 metres, the turbine is expected to generate enough power to meet the annual electricity needs of approximately 20,000 households. Read more: https://lnkd.in/etVHJP5X Massive wind foundations depart Port Esbjerg to the largest US offshore wind project ⚓ The first massive foundations for the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project, the largest offshore wind initiative in the United States, have been shipped from the Port of Esbjerg in Denmark. The port’s unique infrastructure and capacity, including specialised cranes for heavy lifts, play a crucial role in facilitating projects of this scale. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eavrGCmH Find more cases, insights and perspectives from Denmark's wind sector at https://lnkd.in/e96DbdFh Photo credit: Siemens Gamesa & Port Esbjerg

Reflecting on #COP29 – preparing for #COP30 🌍 Today, over 30 partners of the Denmark Pavilion at COP29 gathered for a post-COP29 cool-down event hosted by DI - Dansk Industri in collaboration with the Denmark Pavilion organisers Udenrigsministeriet, Klima-, Energi- og Forsyningsministeriet and State of Green Denmark. The event focused on key takeaways from COP29 and perspectives for COP30 by representatives from both the public and private sector: 🔹 Lars Aagaard, Minister for Climate, Energy and Utilities 🔹 Anne Højer Simonsen, Senior Director and Head of Climate Policy, DI 🔹 Peter Hirsch, Head of Sustainability, 2150 – part of Urban Partners 🔹 Michael Suhr, SVP Group Head of Stakeholder Relations, NKT 🔹 Finn M., Executive Director, State of Green Key takeaways from COP29: ✅ Despite challenging negotiations, an agreement was reached with a new collected financing goal from developed countries to developing countries of USD 300 billion annually. ✅ An agreement on carbon credits was reached completing the last set of rules for the Paris Agreement. As we look ahead to COP30 in Belém, Brazil, it is clear that COP30 will be particularly important for global climate action. Ahead of the COP participating countries are required to submit their updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) for 2035, which will provide an insight into the different countries' level of ambition ahead of the negotiations. The continued focus for Denmark will be public-private partnerships for climate action, continuing with Denmark assuming the EU presidency during the second half of 2025. Here Denmark will lead negotiations on behalf of the EU together with the Commission at COP30, giving Denmark a key role in the international climate efforts of 2025. Stay tuned for updates on Denmark’s participation in COP30 here: https://lnkd.in/ds7x-Hsr