50 percent district heating
About 2.6 million Finns live in houses heated by district heating. District heating use heat energy generated in electricity production, and waste heat from industrial and other processes.
PIPES. District heating means distributing heat generated in a centralized location. (Photo: Crestock)
District heating is the most common form of heating in Finland. It is a natural and reliable heating method in densely built areas. District heating has been produced in Finland since the early 1950s.
95 percent of apartment buildings
District heating is available in almost all towns and population centres in Finland, and district heating accounts for almost half the total heating market. The more densely built the area is, and the larger the buildings are, the more economically viable district heating becomes. Almost 95 percent of apartment buildings and most public and commercial buildings are connected to the district heating network. In single-family houses, just over 6 percent of the heating energy comes from district heat. In the largest towns, the market share of district heating is more than 90 percent
Combined heat and power (CHP)
The superior energy efficiency and environmental compatibility of district heating are based especially on the fact that district heating use heat energy generated in electricity production, and waste heat from industrial and other processes, etcetera, which would otherwise be wasted.
Mixed sources include renewables
District heating fuels include natural gas, coal, peat, oil, and increasingly wood and other renewable energy sources, such as biogas. Almost 80 percent of district heating is obtained from power plants producing heat and electricity, as surplus heat from industry or from biogas combustion in landfills. At small localities, these heat sources are often not available. In such a case, district heat is produced in heating plants producing only heat, often from wood and other renewable fuels.
Water heats water
Customers receive heat through the hot water circulating in the district heating network. The hot water in the supply pipe releases heat to the heating and hot water networks of the building with the customer’s heat exchanger. District heating water does not circulate in the heating and water networks of the building.
Source Finnish Energy Industries
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