heat pumps are devices that act like an inverted refrigerator, moving heat from the air or ground outside a building to the inside through the circulation of a refrigerant. In the case of an air/water heat pump, e.g. thermal energy from the atmosphere – although it may be colder than the air in the building in question – is nevertheless warm enough for the liquid refrigerant to evaporate into a gas. This gas is then passed through a compressor, which increases the pressure of the gas and at the same time raises the temperature. The heat from the gas can then be used to heat up the building, while the refrigerant cools and returns to its original liquid state, allowing the process to start over.
Data from the European Heat Pump Association shows that the UK had the lowest introduction of domestic heat pumps of a list of 21 European countries last year.
In fact, only 1.48 heat pumps were installed per 1,000 UK households – a total of 42,779 units in total – compared to 49.77 for Norway, which had the highest use.
Other countries with a high installation rate of heat pumps are Finland, Estonia, Lithuania and Denmark.
This is the second year in a row that we are at the bottom of this list, although the data for 2020 was slightly better as the UK was at the bottom along with Hungary.
In an effort to curb emissions by phasing out gas boilers, the government has set a target of installing 600,000 heat pumps in UK homes each year by 2028.
And, according to the Independent Climate Change Committee, achieving the UK’s target of reaching net zero by 2050 will require an annual take-up of 15.3 installations per 1,000 households – more than ten times the rate achieved last year.
The committee has calculated that 27.2 million British households would have to replace their gas boiler with a heat pump to reach net zero.
However, at last year’s pace of installation, the UK will need more than 600 years to achieve that goal.
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Clean energy nonprofit Jan Rosenow of the Regulatory Assistance Project told the new scientist that the reason for the poor use of heat pumps in the UK is easily explained.
He said that in the UK “the running costs of gas were cheap, electricity more expensive. That was a major factor in the lower take-up.”
Most countries that have achieved higher rates for the installation of heat pumps, he added, have successfully addressed this imbalance between gas and electricity prices.
Denmark, for example, has reduced the tax on electricity for heating to almost zero, while the Netherlands – traditionally a major gas producer – has started regular reviews of the difference between electricity and gas prices.
The UK government, Thomas Nowak of the European Heat Pump Association, said that “the cleanest heating solution should make the most economically attractive.
“This can be done by introducing a carbon dioxide price and rebalancing the energy tax.”
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There are reasons to expect that the use of heat pumps may be higher next year.
The government plans to gradually shift taxes paid through electricity bills to gas bills – while the energy crisis, which has sent gas prices soaring, has made electricity a much more attractive prospect for consumers.
In addition, homeowners in England and Wales have been able to claim £5,000 since 1 April to help purchase a heat pump through the Boiler Upgrade Programme.
Mr Rosenow said heat pump installers in the UK are now reporting being inundated with orders, with consumers “much more aware of the risks of sticking to fossil fuels for heating given the price volatility”.
Regarding the installation data, a spokesperson for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy told New Scientist that “Like-for-like comparisons with European countries are misleading.”