GridHeating Bridge – A tool for integrated energy management planning

In this project, scientists from the Reiner Lemoine Institute are developing an open, digital tool for energy management planning in the heating transition. It helps municipalities and distribution system operators to jointly consider infrastructure requirements across electricity, gas and heating networks.

Electricity, heat and gas in a feedback chain

The aim of the project is to take a more detailed look at individual supply areas. Users can use the tool to jointly analyse electricity, heat and gas networks in a feedback chain. This is important because developments in one network have an impact on others – for example, if the heat supply is increasingly electrified and the electricity grid reaches its capacity limits, or if the number of gas connections in an area changes significantly. To analyse the interrelationships, the project team combines various open tools, including the pandapipes and eDisGo libraries.

Made for municipalities and municipal utilities

The tool is aimed at different target groups: Municipalities and heat planners can use it to classify their areas, even without their own grid data or modelling expertise. Municipal utilities and distribution system operators can look at expansion and dismantling needs together instead of planning each network individually. Municipalities, for example, can generate required input data synthetically, feed their own data or correct existing data levels instead of recording them from scratch.

From tool selection to coupling

In the first step, the project team identifies and compares open fluid grid modelling tools such as Pandapipes or TesPy. These tools help to calculate and simulate the transport of liquids or gases through a pipeline network – for example, how pressure, flow and temperature behave in a gas or heat network. The researchers then couple them with existing power grid tools.

Testing in two model regions

In addition to the practical text, the project team is applying the new tool to two municipalities with good data availability and validating the results. To ensure that other municipalities and energy suppliers can also benefit from it, the project team is documenting its findings in handouts and a short study.

The projects GridHeating Bridge and GridHeating Compass are closely linked.

Project period: April 2026 – December 2027

• Development of a digital tool for integrated energy management planning
• Comparison and selection of an open fluid network modeling tool (e.g., Pandapipes, TesPy)
• Coupling of electricity grid, gas network and heat network modelling
• Development of a predominantly synthetic database (e.g. via ding0)
• Testing and validation of the coupled tool in two model regions
• Preparation of handouts and a short study