Project reference: 696174
Innovative Technology for District Heating and Cooling
- Funded under: H2020-EU.3.3.1. - Reducing energy consumption and carbon footprint by smart and sustainable
- From 2016-06-01 to 2019-02-28, ongoing project
- Total cost: EUR 1 992 726,25
- EU contribution: EUR 1 992 726,25
- Coordinated in: United Kingdom
- Topic: EE-13-2015 - Technology for district heating and cooling
- Call for proposal: H2020-EE-2015-2-RIA
- Funding scheme: RIA - Research and Innovation action
Project scope
Project objectives
The scientific, technical and operational objectives of the project are presented here.
Concept and approach
The existing District Heating and Cooling Systems (DHCS) must undergo a radical change into low temperature district networks interacting with low energy buildings as well as becoming an integrated part of smart energy systems. The development of future district heating and cooling systems and technologies involves energy savings and conservation measures as an important part of the technology.
The target of InDeal is to automate current District Heating and Cooling Systems in order to achieve increase of the overall energy efficiency of the system and fairly distribution of heating and cooling based on energy demand of each building and their energy efficiency level by prioritizing the distribution of heating or cooling to buildings with low energy efficiency and maximum energy demand.
The following figure presents the InDeal concept overview. InDeal offers a holistic solution!

Figure 1. InDeal concept overview
Work plan
- WP1: Specification of the energy policies, the EDP tool, the DSS, the pilot, lab-scale experiments and the full scale demonstration.
- WP2: Development of innovative solutions for minimizing heat losses in DHCS. The target of this WP is the investigation and development of efficient pipe design via fluid dynamics and insulation materials for a DHCS optimum design.
- WP3: Development of the monitoring tools, where artificial intelligent meters and SM tool will be used, and data processing techniques will be developed and evaluated. Energy Harvesting solutions to make intelligent meters' sensors autonomous will also be developed.
- WP4: Development of the prediction tools, where the WP tool and EDP tool will be developed for near real time forecasting of short term weather and heating and cooling demand.
- WP5: Integration of the individual systems (prediction, monitoring and control systems) and the formulation of the final methodology.
- WP6: Demonstration of the developed systems through the use of prototypes in lad and real case studies, the final assessment of the system and life cycle analysis.
- WP7: This WP is devoted to the performance evaluation study taking into account technical, economic, cultural and ecological issues for the assessment of the steps required for wider industrial implementation, alongside dissemination activities and exploitation planning.
Expected impacts and results
The InDeal project is expected to contribute to the key objectives of the European energy research policy by promoting sustainable development, ensuring security and diversity of energy supply, improving energy efficiency and increasing industrial competitiveness.
By achieving its objectives the project will be in line with the following European Commission targets for the reduction of greenhouse gases.
↑ Efficiency of DHCS by up to 60%
↑ Self-sufficiency of cities on energy
↑ Adoption of DHCS
↑ Economy and prosperity of cities
↑ Access to heating for low income
↓ Energy consumption
↓ Heat and power losses by 20%
↓ Greenhouse gases
↓ Air pollution
↓ Consumption households by 50%
↓ Consumption industry by 40-60%