The business-economic energy system modelling tool energyPRO

The transition towards carbon-neutral energy systems requires the identification of solutions that are optimal at a societal level, however, market actors operate under a different logic where each individual investment option is required to show business-economic feasibility. Thus, while there are energy system analysis modelling tools that can help identify optimal transition paths for a given society in general through the minimisation of national or regional energy system costs, there is also a need for modelling tools that take a closer focus on how energy system actors and their investment considerations perceive and are affected by the economic and technical environment. The modelling tool energyPRO is of the latter type developed and evolved over the last decades to assist in the assessment of the feasibility of different energy units in the energy systems, but which can also model larger complex systems. This article presents energyPRO with a focus on its system understanding and general model characteristics and a thorough view into its two optimisation approaches based on analytical programming or mixed integer linear programming. Finally, a comparison with other models as well as a review of its characterisation and application in the academic literature is supplied. •Introducing the energyPRO model for business economic analyses of energy investments.•Full model description of energyPRO.•Systematic review of energyPRO in the journal literature.•EnergyPRO has been instrumental in the development of district heating in Denmark.•EnergyPRO has helped assess technology options and economic conditions worldwide.