Turning waste heat into opportunity: A conversation with the 2Cool2Waste Cluster

In this episode of the EU Energy Projects Podcast, Areti Ntaradimou had the pleasure of welcoming Mohaddeseh Maktabifard and José Luis Corrales Ciganda, both representing the inspiring 2Cool2Waste cluster; an initiative uniting EU-funded projects that transform waste heat from an overlooked by-product into a practical, clean-energy resource. The discussion opened with Maktabifard briefly explaining what SEEDS, the project she coordinates, is about. Her description was a reminder of how much innovation is happening behind the scenes in our buildings. SEEDS pilots smart, cost-effective electrification solutions - hybrid heat pumps, building-integrated PV, advanced thermal and battery storage - across six European sites. José Luis then introduced the two projects he represents: SynergyNet, which develops tools to optimise multi-energy systems, and Rewire, which focuses on thermally driven cooling technologies using waste or renewable heat. Hearing him describe the project’s progress, from preliminary sector analysis to detailed engineering at four demo sites, made the scale and complexity of these solutions feel very real.