First thermal ‘smart grid’
The Minewater concept can be applied to a limited extent in other former mining areas. In recent years the technology has been further developed into a hybrid network with which the residual (unused) heating and cooling capacity from one customer is not ‘wasted’ but rather used for other customers: The first thermal ‘smart grid’ for the supply of heating and cooling water in Europe.

Hereafter we explain what the initial phase (Minewater 1.0) included and tell about Minewater 2.0, the current phase. Continued development towards Minewater 3.0, which will recognize patterns of demand over time, is the vision for the future. This will involve the integration of weather forecasting knowledge with the time of day and year and, ultimately, customer demand so the relatively warm and relatively cold water can be better routed to where it will be needed.