Joint press release of 17 September 2026
Heat Summit formulates three key demands for a Berlin heat policy
A few days before the elections to the Berlin House of Representatives and the district assemblies, participants of the Berlin heat summit their demands on the future coalition members in the Red Town Hall: The social heat transition must become a central component of the next coalition agreement. The current, renewed cost explosion of fossil fuels such as natural gas and oil shows how decisive steps are to decarbonise the heat supply.
Under the name Heat summit Berlin A network has now also been formed that will continue to critically accompany the development of Berlin's heat policy and speak up.
The key results of the heat summit show: Berlin needs decisive political measures to make the city climate-neutral and social at the same time.
Three Key Outcomes of the Heat Summit of 29 August 2026
1. District heating alone is not a sufficient response to climate crisis and heat protection
A key result of the heat summit is: The previous strong fixation on classic district heating falls short. According to previous plans, district heating is becoming climate-friendly – if at all – only late and with considerable technical, financial and ecological effort.
Particularly problematic are long phase-out paths from natural gas combustion, high-temperature networks as well as the use of wood and waste incineration. They create technological dependencies and make it difficult to decarbonise quickly and reliably.
By contrast, electricity-based decentralised heating solutions, geothermal heat pumps, cold local heating networks, waste heat utilisation and modern storage technologies can achieve the climate targets much faster. In addition, no effective heat protection for the city can be achieved with hot district heating. Modern energy and storage solutions, on the other hand, can better combine climate protection, cooling, resilience and neighbourhood development.
2. Heat transition in the tenant city needs democratic participation
Climate protection and heat transition are not just technical issues, especially in the tenant capital of Berlin. They are social and democratic design tasks. The people who live, heat and pay must be involved in the decisions about the future heat supply.
A politically and democratically legitimized steering committee for district heating and a central control center for local heating are therefore needed. Both structures are to be integrated into an overarching steering board heat transition.
This Steering Board is intended to bring together representatives from administration, civil society, academia, professional practice and urban society. It is intended to lay the foundations for future political decisions and to ensure that the heat transition is implemented in a socially just, transparent and democratically controlled manner.
3. Districts are key players in the social heat transition
The Berlin districts play a central role in the implementation of the heat transition. They know the neighborhoods, buildings, space potentials, social challenges and local actors on site. Districts are indispensable, especially for local heating, cold heating networks, geothermal energy, waste heat utilisation and storage solutions.
In order to be able to assume this responsibility, the districts must be strengthened as quickly as possible in terms of personnel, expertise and funding. They need additional staff, technical know-how, planning skills and clear responsibilities for the social heat transition.
Funding from the state, the federal government and the European Union must be reopened and made accessible for this purpose. Local authorities, cooperatives, citizen energy communities and committed local initiatives urgently need this support in order to implement concrete projects in the neighbourhoods.
Land-owned housing companies as well as public buildings and properties are to be held more accountable as anchor customers. They can secure local heating networks, enable investments and accelerate the heat transition on site.
Appeal to the Future Coalition
The participants of the Berlin Heat Summit call on the future coalition to put the social heat transition at the center of its government program. Berlin does not need regulatory quick shots, but a democratically supported, socially just and climate-politically effective conversion of the energy and heat supply.
The social change of warmth is decided in the neighbourhoods, in the houses and among the people. It only succeeds if climate protection, affordability, heat protection and participation are considered together.
The Heat Summit was organised by:
BUND Berlin, Matthias Krümmel, kruemmel@bund-berlin.de, 030-78 79 00-63
Berlin energy table, Judith Dellheim, info@berliner-energietisch.eu
Nature lovers Berlin, Uwe Hiksch, uwe.hiksch@t-online.de
Climate restart Berlin, Micha Grosch, grosch@klimaneustart.berlin
Powershift, Neelke Wagner, neelke.wagner@power-shift.de, 0157-524 66 920
