Utrecht

In Utrecht, the Science Park comprises approximately 60 buildings, hosting two universities, 170 businesses, sports facilities, student housing, and a botanical garden. The objective of the USP Living Lab is to maximize sustainable energy production and minimize the mismatch between local production and local demand.

A few challenges within the USP lie on the organizational part, such as effectively engaging end-users (e.g., students and employees) in efforts to reduce energy demand. The project will also need to align the various interests and priorities and tackle the different challenges of building owners and departments of the various organizations to work towards a collective approach. Furthermore, regulatory hurdles exist, such as those around sharing energy among buildings. Achieving the USP’s decarbonization goals will also require a shift towards electricity-based systems, requiring additional grid capacity in an already-constrained power network, as well as the integration of smart energy systems.

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