Background

Developing Asia has experienced one of the largest migration from rural to urban areas in history. In the last 20 years, about 600 million people has moved from rural villages to cities. Cities house about 60% of the population in developing Asia, and as such, consume over 2/3 of energy resources and cause over 70% of all carbon emissions. Urban energy consumption is expected to keep growing due to continuing urbanization, but also due to improved living standards. Space heating and cooling use currently about 1/3 of energy resources in cities. However, increased demand for space cooling is expected to raise the bar and become the largest electricity consumer in 2050.

Current technologies are not efficient enough to sustain such demand growth and their impact on electricity systems and the environment would be disastrous. It is necessary to look into sustainable and low carbon heating and cooling technologies that reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions, while providing the same level of comfort. District heating and cooling are potentially the most efficient options to achieve this. This session will present the current status, trends and lessons learned of district heating and cooling in the region.