Experts explain why Denmark’s priciest district heating costs 10 times more

District heating costs more than 10 times as much at Denmark’s most expensive utility as at its cheapest, according to new figures from Forsyningstilsynet reported by DR. For a standard home of 130 square metres with annual consumption of 18.1 megawatt-hours, the difference was more than 30,000 kroner as of August 31.

Tue Patursson, a building construction professional and communicator at the Bolius knowledge centre, said prices depend partly on which energy sources a heating utility uses. These can include heat pumps, natural gas, biogas and wind power.

Utilities with only one or two sources are more exposed to changes in natural gas and electricity prices, Patursson said. Larger utilities with a wider mix of energy sources have more options when prices fluctuate.

The number of customers also affects the cost. Bills cover investments, the price of the energy used to produce heat, fees and tariffs. A large utility can spread those costs among more customers, reducing the cost per household.

Transport distances matter, too. In smaller towns with homes spread out, heat may have to travel farther from the source to customers, increasing heat loss. Utilities with nearby sources of inexpensive renewable energy can keep production costs lower, Patursson said.

Despite the differences, he said district heating remains one of the cheapest ways to heat homes, compared with systems using only natural gas or oil. Almost 70 percent of Danish homes are heated with district heating. Patursson said expanding district heating networks and giving utilities access to more energy sources could help keep prices down.