IEA EBC Annex 83 - Positive Energy Districts

Positive Energy Districts (PEDs) are an innovative concept for the development of urban districts and neighbourhoods that can make an important contribution to climate-neutral urban development. According to the European Commission, 100 PEDs are to be created in Europe by 2025. In order to realise PEDs, firstly, energy efficiency must be improved, secondly, local energy flows must be cascaded by using any surpluses, and thirdly, low-carbon energy generation technologies must be used to cover the remaining energy consumption.

However, PEDs do not aim to achieve a net annual surplus of energy. Rather, it is also necessary to minimise the impact on energy networks by providing options for better load management and increased on-site self-consumption, as well as short- and long-term storage and energy flexibility technologies. Smart control and energy flexibility are needed to match demand with on-site production as much as possible, and to minimize the stress on energy networks.

A multi-sectoral approach is needed to realize PEDs. What is needed are not only innovative building technologies, but particularly new definitions and key concepts for the design of PEDs; methods, tools and technologies for planning and implementation; methods for ex-ante impact assessment as well as ex-post monitoring of PEDs; new organizational and business models; and action guidelines for planning PEDs.

This is the focus of IEA Annex 83, which will collect, systematise, and synthesise the knowledge and experience of the international scientific community on PEDs and prepare it in a form that is understandable for practitioners.

One goal is to include and present Austrian best practices and guidelines from the case studies examined in the international database being developed within this Annex. This would be beneficial twice, by disseminating the cutting-edge research of Austrian projects internationally and in parallel gaining from the international case studies by trying to implement the lessons learnt in the Austrian ones.

Annex 83 is intended to enable leading Austrian research institutions, namely AIT, Joanneum Research, the University of Innsbruck and AEE INTEC, to participate in IEA Annex 83, which raises cooperation on the development of PEDs through the cooperation of the research partners to an international level with cutting-edge research from Austria. Several joint activities are planned, including the development of a comprehensive definition of PEDs and the identification and analysis of relevant technologies, planning tools and decision-making processes related to PEDs. In addition, practical experiences in the development of PEDs are to be documented and relevant projects are to be recorded in a database.

Annex 83 - Publications

Australia, Austria, China, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Finland (lead), Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom

Project leader

Shokufeh ZAMINI
AIT - Austrian Institute of Technology
Giefinggasse 4, 1210 Vienna, Austria
Shokufeh.Zamini@ait.ac.at

Project partners

Anna Kozlowska
AIT - Austrian Institute of Technology
Giefinggasse 4, 1210 Vienna, Austria
anna.kozlowska@ait.ac.at

Camilla Neumann
Joanneum Research, Austria
Camilla.Neumann@joanneum.at

Andreas Tuerk
Joanneum Research, Austria
Andreas.Tuerk@joanneum.at

Michael Gumhalter
AEE - Institut für Nachhaltige Technologien, Austria
m.gumhalter@aee.at

Thomas Ramschak
AEE - Institut für Nachhaltige Technologien, Austria
t.ramschak@aee.at

Fabian Ochs
UIBK - Universität Innsbruck, Austria
Fabian.Ochs@uibk.ac.at