The 2025 figures show that the energy mix is changing again. For the first time in years, biomass use fell, by almost 2%, while electricity increased its share.
And the trend is expected to continue. Official projections suggest that by 2035, more than half of Denmark’s district heating will come from heat pumps and other technologies that do not burn fuel.
Homes are also using less energy.
Since 2015, energy consumption for home heating has fallen by 11%, helped by better-insulated homes and more efficient heating. According to the International Energy Agency, heat pumps are three to five times more energy-efficient than gas boilers.
Now, back in Aalborg, the transition is already under way. When the coal plant closes in a few years, its heat production will be replaced by a combination of heat from nearby industry, thermal storage, electric boilers and a seawater heat pump plant now under construction.
Much like batteries in a power system with variable wind and solar, thermal storage tanks allow utilities to store heat produced when electricity is abundant and prices are low.
When it comes to electrifying district heating, Aalborg is just one of many.
In Esbjerg, the local utility operates one of the world’s largest seawater heat pump facilities, supplying heat to around 25,000 households. And across the country, 218 large heat pump plants supplied district heat in 2025.
The European Commission’s Electrification Action Plan aims for district heating and cooling to supply 15% of the EU’s heating and cooling by 2030. That makes the Danish experience relevant far beyond Aalborg and Esbjerg.
