ABSTRACT
District heating is a proven technology, which increases overall energy efficiency and exergy of the complete thermodynamic system during energy transformation processes. Switching from inefficient individual energy production and consumption in every building to district heating systems, or rehabilitating existing ones, by integrating low carbon technologies and renewable energies, has a positive environmental effect of reducing harmful gases such as CO2, and concentration of hard particles. Therefore, it facilitates climate mitigation, and has positive effects on local health and social-economics. However, integration of low carbon technologies in cold climatic zones is complex. The integration of these technologies are investment intensive and is a challenge for business development in countries with cheap local fossil fuel resources, such as coal, and may need national government interventions by different means such as subsidies, grants, regulatory framework or policy. These issues and challenges of integration of low carbon technologies in developing countries of cold climatic zones are analysed and described in this chapter.
