Evaluation of the Heat Act and Future Heat Market Design

Evaluation of the Heat Act and Future Heat Market Design

Commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs, Ecorys, in collaboration with Innoforte, evaluated the Heat Act in 2016 and issued advice on future market design.

The research forms part of the implementation agenda for heat vision and consists of the following interrelated components:

1. a description of the Heat Market
2. an evaluation of the current Heating Act
3. a description of possible market models that facilitate the desired developments, as described in the heat vision

The report evaluates the current Heating Act and proposes solutions for the identified bottlenecks. The research team also advises on the required changes in the market design around heat in order to achieve the policy objectives. Special attention is paid to the required market organisation models and the way in which the tariff protection of tied customers should be designed. In addition, the required changes that largely fall outside the scope of the current Heating Act are also discussed.

The research shows that an effective Heat Act and an appropriate market organization model alone will not lead to the realisation of heat vision. This also requires other measures, such as making an integrated assessment between different heat options at the local level on the basis of a well-designed assessment framework and implementing effective incentives for both customers and suppliers of sustainable heat.

Evaluation of the Heat Act