For the green transition to succeed, consumer prices for district heating must remain low, regardless of the energy source. The district heating system in Hvide Sande features multiple energy sources, including a solar thermal plant, a heat pump, three 3 MW wind turbines and heat storage tanks. While this mix allows for cost-effective renewable district heating, managing daily operations and electricity procurement is challenging due to the fluctuating nature of renewable energy. 

To address this challenge, Hvide Sande installed the energyTRADE software solution from the global software and consulting company EMD International at the district heating plant. This intelligent control system continuously calculates the most optimal operational approach for the plant in real-time, enabling optimal decisions about which units to activate and whether to sell or purchase electricity across the different markets.  

The energyTRADE solution provides Hvide Sande District Heating with an overview of the most efficient operational schedule of the entire plant. This has meant that the residents of Hvide Sande have paid only one–tenth of the annual average heating price in Denmark in 2022, and enabled Hvide Sande District Heating to produce 92.4 percent of the heat using renewable energy sources.