Smart ThermalNetworks in theEuropean Union STATUS REPORT ON TECHNOLOGYDEVELOPMENT, TRENDS,VALUE CHAINS& MARKETS This document is a publication by the Joint Research Centre (JRC), the European Commission’s scienceand knowledge service. It aimsto provide evidence-based scientific support to the European policymaking process. The contents of this publication do not necessarilyreflect the position or opinion of the European Commission. Neither the European Commission nor any person acting on behalf of theCommission is responsible for the use that might be made of this publication. For information on the methodology and qualityunderlyingthe data used in this publication for which the source is neither Eurostat norother Commission services, users should contact thereferenced source. The designations employed and the presentation of material on the maps do not imply the expression of anyopinionwhatsoever on the part of the European Union concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, orconcerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Contact information Name: Jonathan VoltEmail: JRC-PTT-HEATCOOL@ec.europa.eu EU Science Hubhttps://joint-research-centre.ec.europa.eu JRC139334 EUR 40080 Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2024 © European Union, 2024 The reuse policy of the European Commissiondocuments is implemented by the Commission Decision 2011/833/EU of 12 December2011 on the reuse of Commission documents (OJ L 330, 14.12.2011, p. 39). Unless otherwise noted, the reuse of this document isauthorised under the Creative Commons Attribution4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).This means that reuse is allowed provided appropriate credit is given and any changes are indicated. The European Union does not own the copyright in relation to the following elements: (1) Front page photo © Pavlo Glazkov-stock.adobe.com, (2) Figure 1 comes from Lund et al. 2014. 4th Generation District Heating (4GDH): Integrating smart thermal grids intofuturesustainable energy systems, (3) Figure 4 comes from IRENA, 2020. Innovation outlook: Thermal energy storage. How to cite this report:European Commission, Joint Research Centre,Volt, J., Roca Reina, J.C.,Toleikyte, A.,Mountraki, A.,Letout, S.,Wegener, M.,and Black, C.,Clean Energy Technology Observatory: Smart Thermal Networks in the European Union-2024Status Reporton Technology Development, Trends, Value Chains and Markets, Publications Office of theEuropean Union, Luxembourg, 2024,https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2760/4896278, JRC139334 Contents Abstract.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................2Foreword on the Clean Energy Technology Observatory.............................................................................................................................................3Acknowledgements..........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................4Executive Summary.........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................51.Introduction.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................8Smart thermal network trends in focus....................................................................................................................................................................................122.Technology State of the art and future developments and trends.......................................................................................................172.1Technology readiness level.............................................................................................................................................................................................182.2Installed energy Capacity, Generation/Production....................................................................................................................................192.3Technology Cost–Present and Potential Future Trends...................................................................................................................222.4Public R&I funding.................................................................................................................................................