Irish District Energy Association

Why Skills4DHC? 

The Skills4DHC project addresses two key challenges in the district heating and cooling (DHC) sector: the urgent need for skilled professionals and the recruitment of new talent. As Europe strives to meet its ambitious sustainable energy transition goals, the demand for a highly skilled workforce in the heating sector is growing. Skills4DHC is committed to bridging this gap by training existing professionals and attracting new workers to the DHC sector, ensuring that Europe’s heating systems are ready for the future. 

How We Do It 

Skills4DHC develops a comprehensive set of 13 specialized training programs and mentoring schemes, clustered in 5 programmes: 

• Transnational DHC academy training program  

• White collar professionals and authorities DHC training programme  

• Accademia DHC training programme  

• Blue Collar DHC training programme  

• Trainee recruitment programme 

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Our programs are designed for a wide range of target groups, including staff from DHC enterprises, civil servants in local and national authorities, university students, and skilled workers involved in the construction and maintenance of DHC systems. These programs will be piloted in six European countries—Austria, Estonia, Germany, Ireland, Italy, and the Netherlands—and are set to expand across Europe through a dedicated replication and transnational training initiative. By combining lectures, hands-on training, and technical site visits, participants will gain a comprehensive understanding of the DHC value chain, enabling them to identify, evaluate, and implement clean energy solutions. 

Expected outcome 

Skills4DHC will build a skilled workforce to drive Europe’s heat transition. By developing and testing tailored training programs, we will equip professionals across the DHC sector with the expertise to design, operate, and maintain sustainable, energy-efficient, and renewable heating and cooling systems. This initiative will enable faster modernization and fuel switching of DHC systems, driving the heat transition across Europe. 

 

Partners 

The project consortium is composed of 9 partners: 

 

Austria 

• AEE – Institut für NachhaltigeTechnologien: https://www.aee-intec.at 

 

Belgium 

• Euroheat & Power: https://www.euroheat.org 

 

Denmark 

• PLANENERGI FOND: https://www.planenergi.dk 

 

Estonia 

• MTÜ Enerhack Foundation: https://www.enerhack.org 

 

Germany 

• WIRTSCHAFT UND INFRASTRUKTUR GMBH & CO PLANUNGS KG: https://www.wi-ig.de 

• AGFW-PROJEKTGESELLSCHAFT FUR RATIONALISIERUNG, INFORMATION UND STANDARDISIERUNG MBH: https://www.agfw.de 

 

Ireland 

• Irish District Energy Association CLG: https://districtenergy.ie/ 

 

Italy 

• Politecnico di Milano: https://www.polimi.it 

 

The Netherlands 

• Stichting Warmtenetwerk: https://www.warmtenetwerk.nl 

 

Project website 

https://www.euroheat.org/dhc/eu-projects/skills4-dhc 

 

Funding: 

 

LIFE Programme - GRANT AGREEMENT Project 101167015 - LIFE23-CET-Skills4DHC 

 

Why EnableDHC?

ENABLE DHC fosters the transition to efficient district heating and cooling grids in line with the Energy Efficiency Directive, partnering with relevant stakeholders to develop customised investment plans, and accelerate the energy transition.

9 case studies in 7 different countries:

Weiz-Gleisdorf - Austria
Ljubljana - Slovenia
Acqui Terme - Italy
Poltava - Ukraine
Rijeka - Croatia
Stryi - Ukraine
Riga - Latvia
Vienna - Austria
Tallaght - Ireland

Partners 

The project consortium is composed of 12 partners: 

 Italy

• AMBIENTE ITALIA SRL 
• OPTIT SRL

Austria

• AEE - Institut für Nachhaltige Technologien 
• AIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH 

Germany

• EUROHEAT & POWER 
• Wirtschaft und Infrastruktur GmbH & Co Planungs KG 
• AGFW-Projektgesellschaft für Rationalisierung, Information und Standardisierung mbH

Croatia

• ENERGO DOO ZA PROIZVODNJU I DISTRIBUCIJU TOPLINSKE ENERGIJE I PLINA 

Ireland

• Irish District Energy Association (IrDEA) Company Limited by Guarantee 

Latvia

• Riga Municipal Agency "Riga Energy Agency" 

Slovenia

• Envirodual, Trajnostno Okoljsko in Energetsko Upravljanje, Raziskave in Izobrazevanje, D.O.O. 

Ukraine

• Municipal Institution City Institute 

 

Read more about the project here.