District Heating De-Carbonisation in Belgrade. Multi-Year transition plan

A large share of the city of Belgrade is heated by a District Heating network. Established in 1965, the network delivers 3.6 TWh to more than 20 million square meters of households industries and businesses, by means of a 1460km-long network. The system has been continuously upgraded and adapted to new technologies and already operates at relatively low temperature, with modernized substations. However, the delivered heat is still produced mainly by means of carbon intensive technologies. Conscious of the need to de-carbonise the city, a multi-year transition plan was established, where large investments have been secured, comprising greater interconnection levels, installation of large solar thermal plants and waste incineration plants, and the conversion of a power plant into CHP, among others. In this paper, the criteria for the selection of the technologies, the identification of enabling investments, interaction with stakeholders, securing of financing, and status of the plan are presented. After the execution of the de-carbonisation roadmap, it is expected that the DH system will reduce its carbon intensity by 50%.