Why Should We Have Hot Water from the Network?

What is stopping residents from connecting to the district hot-water network? A conversation with ZEC finance director Edyta Rozwadowska about why residents find it difficult to make such a decision.

Editorial staff: Why are residents so reluctant to connect to the district hot-water network? Even those who would get the internal building installations free of charge?

Edyta Rozwadowska: In a way, I understand people who have recently renovated their homes and bought, for example, a new gas water heater. They are still enjoying the results of the modernization and the new appliance, and now someone is offering them another renovation. They are probably not entirely convinced that what they have done will not be damaged. Besides, they have simply become accustomed to the gas water heater and the expense of gas, and do not see it as a problem. People who already use hot water from the network look at it differently.

And how do users of district heating see it?

Neither I nor my friends who have hot water from the network can imagine replacing it with the troublesome maintenance of gas heaters. It is easy to get used to a better solution. It is also a matter of safety and comfort, because hot water flows from the tap immediately after it is turned on, and we can adjust the water flow as we please.

What would you advise people who have to decide: hot water from the network, or continuing to use gas or electric heaters?

I am an accountant, so if I were in their place, I would calculate the gains and losses. Reduced expenses would tempt me. And I would hold the company carrying out the installation responsible for any possible damage, if it occurred, of course.

And what about those who have not renovated and have not bought a new heater?

I am puzzled and surprised by the attitude of people who have neither carried out renovations nor made purchases, yet are simply opposed to it without any arguments. Connecting to the network brings clear benefits to residents. District heating is cheaper than gas, and economies of scale come into play.

What are economies of scale?

Increased sales reduce the unit cost, and therefore the price per unit of heat, because fixed costs are spread over a greater volume of heat sales, both for central heating and domestic hot water.

In addition, we “make use” of heat for technological purposes, which is necessary to heat up the network at the beginning of the heating season; this is required because of the stresses occurring in the network. Heating the heat-transfer medium (treated water) to the temperature needed to heat apartments requires less energy from the boilers, because it has already been heated in the network for domestic hot-water needs. The loss of heat remaining in the network outside the heating season is also eliminated, and the heating season begins almost immediately because the heat, so to speak, is waiting at the heating substation.

There is also the possibility of supplying heat during the summer, because the heating substations have weather-compensated controls, meaning they switch on at a set temperature.

You mentioned safety?

The safety issue is beyond dispute. Residents of Bolesławiec may not feel this threat so strongly. But it is enough to consider, for example, the events that took place not far from us, in Jelenia Góra. After a gas heater exploded, residents had to connect to safe district heating.

What would you say to people who will have to pay for the installation?

For people who do not take advantage of ZEC’s promotion—the free installation—the situation is somewhat more complicated. They have to pay more than one thousand zlotys for the installation up front. In residents’ view, this does not offset the obvious benefits of connecting to the network, because those benefits are spread over time. In household budgets, large one-off expenses are felt more painfully than expenses that are definitely larger but paid in installments.

A new gas heater costs half as much as the installation?

Exactly—and calculating the risk that it might break down immediately after the warranty expires is an overly pessimistic approach. We generally expect it to serve us for at least ten years. Another important point is that ZEC’s offer is directed at residents who have recently paid off, or are still paying in their rent, installments for thermal modernization; the cost of our domestic hot water will be included in the rent.

What about maintenance shutdowns?

In our case, they last no longer than three days. Interruptions are infrequent, yet residents worry about them during the summer. In other large cities, heating companies reserve a month for such work.

And what benefits does ZEC gain from connecting residents to the district hot-water network? For the company, these are undoubtedly the benefits of increased heat sales during the period that is critical for us—the summer. The seasonal nature of production is also reduced, and liquidity improves during this period. A higher efficiency of heat production and transmission is very important, and above all, the condition of the network improves: it will be exposed to lower stresses than those currently occurring when the network is heated, which will simply reduce its failure rate.

And what about heating prices?

I maintain that, because we are a municipal company operating in the interests of Bolesławiec residents and our prices are regulated by the Energy Regulatory Office, we will share with the people of Bolesławiec the benefits resulting from connecting domestic hot-water consumers. This is what happened with previous investments, including boiler modernization and the interconnection of the network. As a result, we have the cheapest district heating in Lower Silesia, naturally within our production-size category.

(commissioned information)