Energy Region Südostbayern Oberösterreich Salzburg

2026-07-22

Eneregio SOBOS study will investigate the heat potential and heat demand as well as the feasibility of a supra-regional supply of district heating. The scope of the study covers southern Germany (Bavaria) and Austria (Upper Austria and Salzburg). The studied cross-border heating system would be supplied by waste energy from local industry, geothermal and bioenergy plants. As a result of Eneregio SOBOS study, a cross-border renewable energy project will be defined, based on the cooperation between the competent authorities in Austria and Germany. The Eneregio SOBOS study relies on data collection of heat sources and sinks/heat demands in industry and customer sectors. Based on the collected data, feasibility as well as cost and benefits of the cross-border renewable district heating project will be assessed. To complement these activities, Eneregio SOBOS will engage stakeholders and disseminate its results, Overall, if the suspected potential is confirmed in the study, the supra-regional district heating could lead to over 2 TWh of heat consumption being supplied from sustainable sources, reducing regional reliance on fossil fuels, and reducing GHG emissions. Finally, it will facilitate the implementation project promoters to apply for an official status of a cross-border renewable energy project and funding opportunities. If put in place, the transnational network of heat sources and heat sinks from different processes via a district heating transport system will tap into the geological potential for renewable energy deployment and bring multiple benefits. The project area is situated in the area of the Malmkarst, which allows the use of hydrothermal deep geothermal energy. There is also a high industrial density with waste heat potential from Industry, biogas CHP plants and large heat sink potentials in the building stock of towns and villages. The targeted region has large energy demand for agricultural food production and other heat-intensive industrial production processes. This applies to the border region in Bavaria and Austria - especially in the federal states of Upper Austria and Salzburg. A detailed cross-border survey of heat potentials is not yet available, a gap SOBOS project is addressing. A coupling of the sectors should be achieved through the targeted arrangement of heat storage systems in the district heating transport system. As a result, heat generation and heat demand can be linked and taken through seasonal storage throughout the year and made available to customers. This enables the cross-border and year-round use of CO2-free heat for the supply of entire districts, the diversification of the heat supply and the reduction of the dependence on energy imports from outside the EU as part of the energy transition.

Germany

2025-12-15