Quantifying Energy Demand in Mountainous Areas

Despite their rich energy renewable potential, mountainous areas suffer from energy poverty. A viable solution seems to be the radical turn towards renewable resources. Any tailor-cut energy planning for mountainous areas presupposes the adequate estimation of the energy demand of buildings, which in this case is hindered by the lack of long-term meteorological data, especially in remote, high altitude areas. In this paper four case studies, namely Switzerland, Austria, Greece and north Italy, are examined, applying the method of degreedays. The scarcity of meteorological stations at higher altitudes has been overcome by calculating the lapse rates (decrease of surface temperature with altitude) for each case, which were found to vary from the common “rule” of 6.5°C/km. Based on these findings, the air temperatures of all remote, mountainous spots can be calculated, and, therefore, the estimation of the energy needs of buildings has been provided, with a high level of accuracy.