How waste heat, data centres and district heating networks are becoming strategic infrastructure

Switzerland’s heating sector is not facing a new objective, but rather a specific implementation issue. How can security of supply, climate protection and economic viability be combined to create sustainable infrastructure and business models?

On 5 June 2026, the Federal Council decided not to introduce any new federal regulations to improve the use of waste heat for the time being. Instead, priority is to be given to making use of existing instruments and cantonal guidelines. However, the Federal Council has also explicitly identified facilities such as waste-to-energy plants and data centres as potential sources of waste heat. This heat can be fed into district heating networks and made available for use by households and businesses.¹

According to the Swiss Federal Office of Energy, data centres in Switzerland consumed around 2.1 TWh of electricity in 2024, which corresponds to approximately 3.6 per cent of total consumption. The figure is expected to rise to between 2.5 and 3.2 TWh by 2030. This means that data centres are not only significant consumers of electricity, but also potential partners for heating and cooling networks, site developments and industrial waste heat management schemes.

The need for action is structural: in Switzerland, the heating sector accounts for around 50 per cent of energy consumption and is responsible for more than 35 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions. The decarbonisation of the heating sector is therefore a key lever for achieving net zero by 2050. At the same time, increasing the use of domestic renewable energy can reduce dependence on imported energy and strengthen security of supply.²

Heating is becoming an investment and infrastructure issue

Transforming Switzerland’s heating sector is about more than just heating. It has implications for building portfolios, energy suppliers, industrial sites, data centres, cities, municipalities and investors alike.

There are three main considerations:

• Security of supply: heating is a critical infrastructure, particularly in winter. Heat pumps, district heating networks, storage systems, waste heat, geothermal energy and biomass are changing load profiles, grid requirements and interdependencies within the energy system.
• Climate protection: fossil fuels must be phased out gradually. The focus is not on individual technologies, but on the right mix of building renovation, renewable heat, waste heat recovery, electrification and grid infrastructure.
• Cost-effectiveness: projects must be viable investment opportunities. District heating networks are not cost-effective everywhere; decentralised solutions are not always the best option. What matters is adopting a location- and portfolio-based approach that brings together costs, risks, customer density, eligibility for funding, impacts on the electricity grid and long-term value retention.

This is precisely where the real opportunity lies: waste heat from data centres, industry, waste-to-energy plants or wastewater treatment can be transformed from a by-product into a strategic asset. This involves bringing together heat sources, heat sinks, networks, owners, customers and investors at an early stage.

The most urgent clarifications for businesses

Energy suppliers, real estate companies, industry stakeholders and infrastructure investors now need to make some practical decisions:

Where is there significant demand for heating and cooling? Which locations are suitable for district heating networks? Where can waste heat be used cost-effectively? Which buildings should be electrified on a decentralised basis? What investments are needed to avoid lock-in effects later on? And what kinds of partnership models are required between energy suppliers, data centres, industry, real estate, the public sector and investors?

These questions are particularly important because the market is shaped by cantonal and local regulatory frameworks, regional energy suppliers and locally driven infrastructure decisions. What is needed is not a one-size-fits-all solution, but robust decision-making models and practical roadmaps.

How Deloitte can help

Deloitte can help organisations structure the transformation of the heating sector as an integrated business, infrastructure and financing initiative.

• Strategy and vision: development of a strategic vision for the heating sector up to 2050, including market role, technological approach, customer segments, partnerships and investment priorities.
• Portfolio and asset transformation: evaluation of heating, electricity, gas, building, industrial and data centre assets; identification of potential for waste heat recovery, grid integration and decarbonisation.
• Security of supply and resilience: analysis of winter electricity demand, load profiles, energy price risks, regulatory developments and system interdependencies.
• Cost-effectiveness and financing: preparation of robust business cases, financial models, funding frameworks, partnership models and investable project portfolios.
• Operating model and implementation: definition of governance, roles, processes, data models and roadmaps for the implementation of specific infrastructure and decarbonisation programmes.
• ESG, data and reporting: measurement of emissions, capital expenditure, progress towards net-zero targets, climate risks and financial impacts.

Deloitte Switzerland positions the power, utilities and renewables sector as a key driver of the energy transition and helps companies to transform their business models and scale up electrification and low-carbon technologies. Deloitte also provides support with net-zero strategies, transition risks and the integration of sustainability into operational processes.

Conclusion

The heating sector is becoming a strategic link between energy, real estate, industry, digitalisation and infrastructure capital. The current emphasis on waste heat and data centres shows that the next phase of the transformation will not be determined solely by climate targets, but by the ability to implement specific projects in a cost-effective and resilient way, in partnership with relevant stakeholders.

Addressing heating as an infrastructure and investment issue will help strengthen security of supply, reduce emissions and unlock new business models.