District heating is, on the one hand, an important energy efficiency measure. On the other hand, it is an important infrastructure to increase the share of renewable energy in heating and cooling. However, there is no strong regulation in place comparable to electricity and natural gas from a consumer´s perspective: They generally are in a weak position with high infrastructure costs entailing high prices. Therefore, AK proposes a reform of the framework conditions of the local and district heating and cooling markets on European level.