Standardized Financing for Decarbonized Heat

SOLID Solar Energy Systems GmbH is spearheading financial and contractual innovation in the European HeatMineDH project to unlock investment in renewable and waste heat integration for district heating (DH). By introducing and advancing phase-aligned financial models and contracting methodologies, the project paves the way for scalable low-carbon heat deployment across Europe.

Targeting over 8 DH case studies, HeatMineDH addresses long-standing investment barriers through a unified framework combining economic assessment, tariff setting, and customer engagement tools.

What’s new?
At the core is a financial model tailored for Heat-as-a-Service (HaaS) schemes, incorporating economic KPIs to guide investment decisions from early feasibility to contract closure. A matching customer retention plan introduces a staged commitment structure, enabling stepwise development of Heat Purchase Agreements (HPAs) as projects mature.

Key advantages:

• Consistent investment evaluation with standardized economic KPIs
• HaaS structures enabling off-balance-sheet financing
• Contractual alignment with project development stages

Strong EU cooperation
As leader of Work Package “Investment Plans and Implementation Support”, SOLID delivers the financial model, tariff design, contract templates, and customer retention instruments. These tools accelerate project bankability and adoption of renewable heat across European DH networks.

Bernhard Gerardts, project lead at SOLID:
“With this standardized financial and contractual toolbox, we support district heating companies move from concept to operation. Our goal is to make low-grade heat investable — and enable decarbonization at scale.”