Development of a District Heating Resilience Index: A Multi-criteria Assessment Approach Based on Latvian Case Studies
Lecture Notes in Computer Science 2026
Maksims Feofilovs, Renāte Lakste, Francesco Romagnoli

The study proposes a new approach to evaluating the resilience of district heating (DH) infrastructure by developing a District Heating Resilience multicriteria analysis (MCA). In this context, resilience is defined as the ability of a DH system to absorb, adapt to, and recover from disruptions while maintaining essential heat supply services. The methodology incorporates 24 indicators spanning technical, economic, environmental, and social dimensions. The MCA approach developed is based on many indicators related to technical, economic, social, and environmental aspects of DH. A method known as TOPSIS was used to assess and compare resilience performance across three DH networks in Latvia. To establish the framework and indicators for resilience assessment, the work draws on a wide range of literature and interviews related to DH technologies, historical development, and energy system risks. The DH networks selected for cases studies were analyzed using the defined indicators, allowing the identification of factors that most strongly influence overall resilience. Among them, energy source dependency, aging infrastructure, and exposure to weather extremes stood out. The results of this study provide a structured way to assess the resilience of heat supply systems and can help guide future development of a standardized index development for DH resilience assessment, which can improve upgrades and planning strategies in line with sustainability and energy security goals.


Keywords
District heating; Resilience; Infrastructure; Multi-criteria analysis
DOI
10.1007/978-3-031-97645-2_10
Hyperlink
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-97645-2_10

Feofilovs, M., Lakste, R., Romagnoli, F. Development of a District Heating Resilience Index: A Multi-criteria Assessment Approach Based on Latvian Case Studies. In: Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Turkey, Stambula, 30 Jun-3 Jul., 2025. Germany: Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH, 2026, pp.154-165. ISBN 978-303197644-5. Available from: doi:10.1007/978-3-031-97645-2_10

Publication language
English (en)
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