Last week, the 15th International Ruhr Energy Conference 2026 (INREC) took place at the University of Duisburg-Essen. In the session ‘Energy Policy, Buildings and Behaviour’, Lisa Sieger (UDE) presented a study on quantifying the so-called energy performance gap in residential buildings, which was carried out as part of the KliWinBa project. Specifically, the study examines the differences in the assessment of residential buildings’ energy efficiency based on energy consumption and demand certificates. The findings met with keen interest from the specialist community and provided important impetus for further discussion regarding the validity and application of the various types of certificates.
The study will be published soon.

Tuesday, 6 October 2026, 9.00 am – 4.00 pm

University of Duisburg-Essen, Glass Pavilion, Essen Campus

Last year, we discussed together how the heating transition can succeed in conurbations. A year on, a lot has happened: municipal heating planning has been finalised in many major cities, the legal framework has evolved – and the crucial question remains: how does planning actually translate into implementation?

We warmly invite you to this year’s workshop. Together with experts from academia, the professional sector and politics, we want to explore what has changed since last year – and what really matters now to ensure the heating transition in the existing building stock is a success.

Key topics:

• Use of heat pumps in the existing building stock (particularly in blocks of flats)
• Recent legislative changes
• Municipal heating planning for major cities is underway – what happens next?

Further information can be found at: Workshop

You can register here until 30 September 2026.

Workshop language is German.

On 2 June, a meeting took place between the UDE and Stadtwerke Bochum. The focus was on discussing various geothermal projects currently being planned and implemented by Stadtwerke Bochum.

About a month later, a further meeting with Fraunhofer IEG was on the agenda. The focus here was on the potential of deep and near-surface geothermal energy. In addition to a clear explanation of the geological conditions in North Rhine-Westphalia, the meeting provided valuable insights for the further development of the case studies.

We would like to express our sincere thanks for this fascinating exchange.