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Jenny Palm

Jenny Palm

Head of department

Jenny Palm

Cold and expensive v hot, cheap and eco-friendly: the contrasting histories of home heating in the UK and Sweden

Author

  • Aimee Ambrose
  • Jenny Palm

Summary, in English

The new year in Sweden began with some record-breaking cold temperatures. Temperatures in the village of Kvikkjokk in the northern Swedish part of Lapland dropped to -43.6°C, the lowest recorded since records began in 1887.

Yet for the majority of Swedish households, heating is not an issue. Those living in the multi-household apartment blocks that characterise Sweden’s towns and cities enjoy average temperatures of 22°C inside their homes, thanks to communal heating systems that keep room temperatures high and costs low. For many households, heating is charged at a flat rate and included in the rent they pay.

Department/s

  • The International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics

Publishing year

2026

Language

English

Publication/Series

The Conversation

Document type

Specialist publication article

Topic

  • Science and Technology Studies
  • Energy Engineering

Keywords

  • Home heating
  • district heating
  • Sweden
  • United Kingdom
  • oral histories
  • energy justice
  • energy poverty
  • SDG 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy
  • SDG 13 - Climate Action

Status

Published

Project

  • Looking back, moving forwards: a social and cultural history of home heating

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 2201-5639