920 TWh of Waste; Is Heat The Biggest Untapped Prize You're Not Taking Advantage Of?

18 Nov 2026

Industry pours money into heat, yet the EU wastes 920 TWh of thermal energy a year. Heat, not electricity, is where much of the decarbonisation prize actually sits. This session covers sustainable heat production, thermal storage and cogeneration: how recovering, storing and sharing heat cuts cost and carbon at the same time.

  • Is CHP a bridge to net zero, or a stranded-asset risk as the grid decarbonises?
  • High-temperature industrial heat pumps could meet up to 37% of process-heat demand. What's really blocking rollout?
  • Thermal storage and batteries can time-shift heat the way a battery shifts electricity. Could heat storage be a cheaper flexibility play?
  • Waste heat as a shared asset for industrial clusters.