Heat pump installations in the UK have already exceeded last year’s total, setting a new milestone for the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) with three months still to go in 2024. By the end of September, 42,000 installations were completed—outpacing 2023's total by approximately 4%.
The UK government is launching the Warm Homes Grant in 2025, an exciting initiative aimed at helping homeowners make their properties more energy-efficient. This fully funded scheme is available to those who meet certain criteria and could significantly reduce your energy costs while lowering your home's carbon footprint.
This week, the UK's last coal power station closed, signalling that the country’s energy landscape is undergoing a massive transformation. For over 200 years, coal was king, powering industry and homes alike. But today, renewable energy sources like wind, solar, and hydro are rapidly replacing fossil fuels in the national grid. With that change comes a new challenge—and opportunity—for those of us in the heating and plumbing industry.
With the UK election out the way and a new government in place, we feel it’s important to explore the potential implications for the heat pump market now that Labour has taken the helm. For plumbers, particularly those considering diversifying into heat pump installations, Labour's anticipated measures could present significant opportunities in the evolving green energy sector.
The UK remains overly dependent on natural gas, according to the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), which provides independent recommendations to the government.
In its recent annual assessment, the NIC highlights the urgent need to reduce reliance on high-cost, high-carbon natural gas and accelerate the adoption of heat pump technology to meet the ambitious net zero targets by 2050. According to the Commission, decarbonising buildings is a critical aspect of this transition and represents the single biggest challenge on the path to net zero.
Human activity IS changing the climate to an unprecedented level, and some of the change is already irreversible. That is the conclusion from the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (“IPCC”) report. Solutions are needed across all sectors in order to rapidly reduce emissions. Both Governments and individuals need to make positive decisions that will reduce carbon emissions right away.
In it’s latest special report, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has recommended that no new fossil fuel boilers should be sold from 2025, if the world is to achieve zero carbon emissions by 2050. Instead, homes should be heated by low carbon technologies such as ground source heat pumps and air source heat pumps.
British electricity reached a “green record” over the Easter weekend, with the carbon emissions factor for electricity dropping to just 39 grams of carbon dioxide per unit of electricity, which is a record low. This is a glimpse into the future normal for British electricity, and puts into sharp focus the potential for heat pumps to help decarbonise heating in the UK.
The Government is currently consulting on its new Future Homes Standard, which includes proposals to increase the energy efficiency requirements for new homes in 2020. Part of this includes an update to Part L of the Building Regulations, which is the section that relates to energy efficiency, and in particular the changes that will make heat pumps the go-to heating system for developers.
Experts have said that major energy efficiency refurbishment of millions of homes are required in order to cut carbon emissions. This comes following the news of keeping the world below 1.5C warming.
