It consists of producing electricity and heat in the most efficient way, i.e. in a single technological process. The essence of this process is a significant degree of utilisation of the primary energy contained in the fuel to produce electricity and heat. This leads to a high degree of economic efficiency in the process and the ability to meet the ever-increasing environmental requirements to a greater extent compared to distribution systems, in addition to those fired by coal fuel.
A variety of the available generating equipment in a wide range of capacities and technical parameters, as well as the form of heat generated: hot water, steam, chilled water or flue gas, enable the use of cogeneration in industrial plants. Solutions using waste heat from technological and production processes emitted into the atmosphere and feeding it into cogeneration systems or equipment converting it to another form of energy are also possible.
Another area of application for cogeneration is the production of heat to supply district heating systems. This solution partly ensures that the requirements for heat generation and transmission in the public sector – the so-called Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) – are met.
The use of cogeneration in energy systems can, in many cases, also be a stabilising element for local distribution systems to which photovoltaic installations or wind farms, whose operation is intermittent, are commonly connected.
A widespread use of the technology based on the combustion of gaseous fuel, co-firing or 100% combustion of the so-called 'green' fuels, i.e. biomethane, biogas or hydrogen, is one of the directions of the energy transition.
This term describes the process of modifying economies and the existing energy networks leading to a reduction in energy consumption and greenhouse gases. This not only reduces the cost of doing business, but also enables emission reduction targets to be met.
Construction work is carried out on behalf of the investor (or by the investor itself), who is obliged under Article 18 of the Construction Law Act to organise the entire process, including, inter alia, to ensure that construction work is carried out and supervised by persons authorised to perform independent technical functions in construction in the required scope and specialisation, viz:
In addition to the above-mentioned persons, it may be necessary to include other specialists with relevant qualifications, e.g. a surveyor, geologist, archaeologist and others.
Construction work as the performance of a technologically defined set of activities is only one of several stages of a construction investment (construction process). In order for them to commence, the requirements set out in the Construction Law must be met, in particular, a design must be prepared and the investor must obtain the relevant administrative decision subject to Articles 29 and 30 of the Construction Law Act (which must become a final decision before construction work can commence) or make the relevant notification.