Abstract for: Measuring the Socio-Economic Impact of New-Generation District Heating Networks Utilizing Renewable Energies

The work aims to measure the socio-economic impact of constructing and expanding a new-generation district heating network that utilizes renewable energies. The impacts considered include customer acquisition, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction, awareness enhancement, employment generation, and the levelized costs of energy. The model is constructed using a PESTLE (Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, Environmental) analysis to characterize the system from various perspectives. Subsequently, a system thinking and system dynamics approach is applied to interconnect variables and identify feedback loops, causal relationships, and emergent patterns. The dynamics of customers transitioning from fossil fuel heating systems to heat pumps and new-generation district heating are analyzed. This analysis considers factors such as energy prices, risks, subsidies, legislation, and public awareness. The impacts are measured in terms of energy consumption, GHG emissions reduction, employment creation by the system, and the levelized cost of energy for the different technologies available on the market.