District heating (DH) systems can contribute substantially to the decarbonization of the heating sector by enabling the implementation of sustainable heating solutions such as ambient heat (AH) and waste heat (WH). However, these sources are subject to economic risks arising from uncertainties in future energy prices and availability. This paper presents a techno-economic analysis for a decarbonized DH network for a city in Poland, using a simulation model that evaluates levelized cost of heat (LCOH) across a wide range of heat supply portfolios including AH and WH sources. It considers uncertainties related to energy price and WH cessation scenarios as well as sensitivities related to WH prices, heat demand, and biomass availability. Results show that the DH system configuration plays a key role in determining the average cost, due to the relatively large share of CAPEX in the LCOH calculations, underscoring the importance of accurate investment cost assumptions. Further important factors are the development of the heat demand and the availability of biomass. The presence of low-cost industrial WH is beneficial. In general, there is a trade-off: minimizing average cost results in a higher economic risk. ... Read more

Background: The transition to a renewable energy based and decentralized energy system poses growing challenges for grid stability, particularly regarding redispatch measures. Traditionally carried out by large-scale conventional power plants at the transmission grid level, redispatch operations must adapt to changing conditions as conventional capacities decline and the need for system flexibility increases. Industrial facilities—especially those connected at the distribution grid level—offer untapped potential for participation in redispatch provision. The project Industry4Redispatch, embedded in Austria’s NEFI model region, explored the technical, regulatory, and economic conditions for integrating industrial assets into the redispatch process, including coordination between transmission system operators (TSOs) and distribution system operators (DSOs), as well as the development of standardized redispatch processes. Approach: This paper summarizes the congestion and redispatch analysis conducted within the project, focusing on Austria in 2030. Considering uncertainties in the spatial distribution of future generation, demand, and flexibility, the model results show consistency with real redispatch outcomes when compared to publicly available data on costs and activation volumes. Besides these uncertainties, the modeling is based on the National Trends+ scenario of the TYNDP 2024 and does not include variations or sensitivity analyses. Conclusions: The results show that integrating industrial flexibility leads to moderate but consistent system benefits, including a reduction in total redispatch costs by up to 1.5% and a decrease in curtailment of renewable generation by about 7.5% in Austria. The findings indicate that industrial flexibility potentials represent a valuable complement to existing redispatch resources and can enhance the efficiency of congestion management. Particularly in the area of negative redispatch, they make an important contribution by reducing the need to curtail renewable generation. Although the overall impact remains limited due to local and temporal constraints, the targeted use of industrial facilities in redispatch activations supports and improves the integration of renewable energy. The results underline the central importance of an adequate system design and targeted regulatory adjustments to enable the reliable and cost-efficient activation of industrial flexibility for redispatch in the future. ... Read more