Excited to share that a new report on the non-market benefits of Large Thermal Energy Storage (LTES) is now publicly available. Prepared by the Energieinstitut an der JKU Linz as part of the TREASURE project, the report explores a simple but important question:
Do the benefits of LTES create value beyond pure economics? The answer is yes.
Here are a few key insights from the report:
– Strong public support for LTES: Across nearly 2,900 heating customers, support for LTES remained consistently high at 65–70%.
– Resilience matters and people value it: Customers are willing to pay not only for lower CO2 emissions, but also for increased resilience against international energy price spikes and supply disruptions.
– Operators accept longer payback periods: District heating operators indicated that LTES investments can justify an extension of the typical payback period from 15 to 17 years (average values). A strong signal that non-market benefits influence real investment decisions.
These findings show that resilience, security of supply, and public acceptance are not just “nice to have”. They support and strengthen the business case for thermal energy storage.
The report combines a comprehensive SWOT analysis with survey responses from around 2,900 district heating customers and 48 district heating operators.
he full report is available here