Sweden's cheap communal heating offers a blueprint as energy costs soar
A new study contrasts Britain's expensive individual home heating with Sweden's networked communal systems that keep costs flat and homes warm even in extreme cold. The findings suggest policymakers and developers should reconsider how housing is heated, potentially cutting household expenses and carbon emissions simultaneously.
Originaltitel: Cold and expensive v hot, cheap and eco-friendly: the contrasting histories of home heating in the UK and Sweden
The new year in Sweden began with some record-breaking cold temperatures. Temperatures in the village of Kvikkjokk in the northern Swedish part of Lapland dropped to -43.6°C, the lowest recorded since records began in 1887.Yet for the majority of Swedish households, heating is not an issue. Those living in the multi-household apartment blocks that characterise Sweden’s towns and cities enjoy average temperatures of 22°C inside their homes, thanks to communal heating systems that keep room temperatures high and costs low. For many households, heating is charged at a flat rate and included in the rent they pay.