In this tenth episode, we discuss the future of heat networks as one of the main technical challenges in our ambition toward a fossil-free world. What exactly are heat networks? How sustainable are they? And which sources of heat should be applied?

A district heating network is as sustainable as the resources that feed it. Therefore, we need to move away from traditional district heating systems that are often dependent on one fossil fuel-based heat source to more sustainable ways of supplying heat. This transition comes with innovations and challenges. Innovations include the application of huge e-boilers, diversification in heat sources, and moving towards more flexibility in the supply of sources to our networks. What are the biggest challenges to overcome in these innovations? How dependent is district heating on the gas market? And how affordable is district heating for the consumer?

Bart Dehue (Manager of Green Heat Source team at Vattenfall), Britt Verhesen (Project Leader of Energy Transition at the City of Antwerp), and Henk Jan Top (Managing Director Utilities at Accenture), discuss the future of heat networks and how sustainable district heating networks are. They discuss the challenges and possibilities of moving to sustainable heat sources.

In this tenth episode, we discuss the future of heat networks as one of the main technical challenges in our ambition toward a fossil-free world. What exactly are heat networks? How sustainable are they? And which sources of heat should be applied?
A district heating network is as sustainable as the resources that feed it. Therefore, we need to move away from traditional district heating systems that are often dependent on one fossil fuel-based heat source to more sustainable ways of supplying heat. This transition comes with innovations and challenges. Innovations include the application of huge e-boilers, diversification in heat sources, and moving towards more flexibility in the supply of sources to our networks. What are the biggest challenges to overcome in these innovations? How dependent is district heating on the gas market? And how affordable is district heating for the consumer?
 Bart Dehue (Manager of Green Heat Source team at Vattenfall), Britt Verhesen (Project Leader of Energy Transition at the City of Antwerp), and Henk Jan Top (Managing Director Utilities at Accenture), discuss the future of heat networks and how sustainable district heating networks are. They discuss the challenges and possibilities of moving to sustainable heat sources.

A podcastseries by Accenture on how we organize our future energy needs.

Transition Talk

Transitioning to sustainable heat sources for district heating

The decreasing stability of the grid by feeding in more renewable energy poses a future treat to the grid’s stability. What measures can we take to ensure a future proof grid?

A major technical challenge associated with the energy transition is the decreasing stability in the electricity grid. By feeding in more renewable sources the system’s inertia drops, resulting in the grid becoming less capable to respond to sudden changes. The inertia, usually provided by the large spinning generators in conventional power plants, will need to be monitored and in time be substituted by new technologies.

Are we sufficiently aware of this imminent problem? Where are we already facing problems? And how do we ensure the system’s reliability?

A major challenge

National Grid ESO and Reactive Technologies recognize the challenge and are jointly taking the first steps by setting up a pioneering real-time inertia monitoring mechanism on the UK’s grid. The next step is investing in and exploiting novel inertia providing services like spinning fly wheels, capacitors and batteries in order to maximize the contribution of renewables.

In this episode of our Transition Talk series:
- Gregorio Ogliaro, Utilities, Transmission and Distribution Global Lead at Accenture
- Fintan Slye, Director of the ESO
- Marc Borrett Co-Founder and CEO of Reactive Technologies

They discuss the challenges and developments regarding the grid system’s inertia.

The decreasing stability of the grid by feeding in more renewable energy poses a future treat to the grid’s stability. What measures can we take to ensure a future proof grid?
A major technical challenge associated with the energy transition is the decreasing stability in the electricity grid. By feeding in more renewable sources the system’s inertia drops, resulting in the grid becoming less capable to respond to sudden changes. The inertia, usually provided by the large spinning generators in conventional power plants, will need to be monitored and in time be substituted by new technologies.
Are we sufficiently aware of this imminent problem? Where are we already facing problems? And how do we ensure the system’s reliability?
A major challenge
National Grid ESO and Reactive Technologies recognize the challenge and are jointly taking the first steps by setting up a pioneering real-time inertia monitoring mechanism on the UK’s grid. The next step is investing in and exploiting novel inertia providing services like spinning fly wheels, capacitors and batteries in order to maximize the contribution of renewables.
In this episode of our Transition Talk series: - Gregorio Ogliaro, Utilities, Transmission and Distribution Global Lead at Accenture - Fintan Slye, Director of the ESO - Marc Borrett Co-Founder and CEO of Reactive Technologies
They discuss the challenges and developments regarding the grid system’s inertia.

The essential role of the system inertia in a future proof renewable grid

For the past decade companies have been trying to offer a broad range of energy-related offerings to their customers touching upon people’s houses, cars and lifestyle. So far, there are no real success stories, but will this change now that electric vehicles and hence eMobility services are here to stay?

The energy transition coupled with the advancement of technology offers companies a sea of opportunities to engage deeper with their customers when it comes to energy-related services. Many positive business cases have been developed on what to bet, but reality has proven to be more difficult. With the rise in electric vehicles and the strong government push we see companies from various sectors entering the market. From new entrants specialized in eMobility services, energy utilities that want a piece of the cake and OEMs that are now looking beyond just developing and selling electric vehicles. Hence, will the rapid development of eMobility services be the missing link to successfully launch bundled energy services?

Today we talk with Joris Laponder, CCO of Eneco eMobility, Pieter Willems, Investor and Co-Founder of PowerD, and Sila Sarac, Sr. Manager Business Strategy Utilities and eMobility about the role eMobility services will play in developing closer relationship with customers. We will be looking into questions such as: Is eMobility the missing link for bundled services to really take off? Will bundled energy offerings accelerate the energy transition? How can companies tap into the opportunity of easing their customers lives in the increasingly complex energy system?

For the past decade companies have been trying to offer a broad range of energy-related offerings to their customers touching upon people&rsquo;s houses, cars and lifestyle. So far, there are no real success stories, but will this change now that electric vehicles and hence eMobility services are here to stay?
The energy transition coupled with the advancement of technology offers companies a sea of opportunities to engage deeper with their customers when it comes to energy-related services. Many positive business cases have been developed on what to bet, but reality has proven to be more difficult. With the rise in electric vehicles and the strong government push we see companies from various sectors entering the market. From new entrants specialized in eMobility services, energy utilities that want a piece of the cake and OEMs that are now looking beyond just developing and selling electric vehicles. Hence, will the rapid development of eMobility services be the missing link to successfully launch bundled energy services?
Today we talk with Joris Laponder, CCO of Eneco eMobility, Pieter Willems, Investor and Co-Founder of PowerD, and Sila Sarac, Sr. Manager Business Strategy Utilities and eMobility about the role eMobility services will play in developing closer relationship with customers. We will be looking into questions such as: Is eMobility the missing link for bundled services to really take off? Will bundled energy offerings accelerate the energy transition? How can companies tap into the opportunity of easing their customers lives in the increasingly complex energy system?

The impact of bundled energy offerings

Mede mogelijk gemaakt door: Accenture


As discussed in our first podcast episode A hydrogen economy in the future  how and when?, the transition toward a hydrogen economy comes with complex challenges. In this video series about hydrogen, we focus on these challenges:Part 1: steps towards cost competitive green hydrogen

In this first video of the Transition Talk series, Joël Meggelaars, Senior Regulatory Affairs & Stakeholder Manager at Ørsted, and Sander van Ginkel, Managing Director at Accenture, discuss possibilities to make green hydrogen cost competitive.Check this video on YouTube.Part 2: the role of industrial clusters in a hydrogen economy

In this second video of the Transition Talk series, Annemarie Manger, Director Sustainability at Tata Steel, and Femke de Jager, Managing Director at Accenture, discuss the challenges regarding the application of sustainable hydrogen in the production processes of hard-to-abate industries, like steel production. Check this video on YouTube.Part 3: hydrogen infrastructure: how and when?

In this second video of the Transition Talk series, Annemarie Manger, Director Sustainability at Tata Steel, and Femke de Jager, Managing Director at Accenture, discuss the challenges regarding the application of sustainable hydrogen in the production processes of hard-to-abate industries, like steel production. Check this video on YouTube.Also check our podcast

A large-scale sustainable hydrogen roll-out is required for a hydrogen economy. How can we achieve this? And when? 

In this podcast Melissa Stark, Global Renewables Lead at Accenture, Noé van Hulst, Hydrogen Envoy at the Ministry of Economic Affairs & Climate Policy, and René Schutte, Program Manager Hydrogen at Gasunie, discuss the role that hydrogen may play in our future energy system. Especially, green and blue hydrogen are discussed, as well as the timing and scaling of a hydrogen market and possible regulatory changes to stimulate a hydrogen economy.

Mede mogelijk gemaakt door: <a href="https://www.accenture.com/nl-en">Accenture</a> As discussed in our first podcast episode A hydrogen economy in the future how and when?, the transition toward a hydrogen economy comes with complex challenges. In this video series about hydrogen, we focus on these challenges: <h2>Part 1: steps towards cost competitive green hydrogen</h2> In this first video of the Transition Talk series, Joël Meggelaars, Senior Regulatory Affairs &amp; Stakeholder Manager at Ørsted, and Sander van Ginkel, Managing Director at Accenture, discuss possibilities to make green hydrogen cost competitive. Check this video on <a href="https://youtu.be/Q2JMWhx3z24" target="_blank" title="">YouTube</a>. <h2>Part 2: the role of industrial clusters in a hydrogen economy</h2> In this second video of the Transition Talk series, Annemarie Manger, Director Sustainability at Tata Steel, and Femke de Jager, Managing Director at Accenture, discuss the challenges regarding the application of sustainable hydrogen in the production processes of hard-to-abate industries, like steel production. Check this video on <a href="https://youtu.be/coLPFOCnhxs" target="_blank" title="">YouTube</a>. <h2>Part 3: hydrogen infrastructure: how and when?</h2> In this second video of the Transition Talk series, Annemarie Manger, Director Sustainability at Tata Steel, and Femke de Jager, Managing Director at Accenture, discuss the challenges regarding the application of sustainable hydrogen in the production processes of hard-to-abate industries, like steel production. Check this video on <a href="https://youtu.be/FO-pR8OsBfQ" target="_blank" title="">YouTube</a>. <h2>Also check our podcast</h2> A large-scale sustainable hydrogen roll-out is required for a hydrogen economy. How can we achieve this? And when? In this podcast Melissa Stark, Global Renewables Lead at Accenture, Noé van Hulst, Hydrogen Envoy at the Ministry of Economic Affairs &amp; Climate Policy, and René Schutte, Program Manager Hydrogen at Gasunie, discuss the role that hydrogen may play in our future energy system. Especially, green and blue hydrogen are discussed, as well as the timing and scaling of a hydrogen market and possible regulatory changes to stimulate a hydrogen economy.

A hydrogen economy in the future – how and when?

Transitioning to sustainable heat sources for district heating

Transition Talk

In 1 playlist(s)

Transition Talk

Social links

Follow podcast

Recent clips