Heat pumps are expected to meet the majority of heating demand from 2025 under the Future Homes Standard. As the government legislates to stimulate the market, Griff Thomas from GTEC provides an overview of what has been an exciting year for heat pumps and explores the benefits of upskilling to this promising technology.
It’s been an interesting year for heat pumps, marked by the end of the domestic Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) and the beginning of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) in March 2022.
The initial drop from 7789 installations in March 2022 to 1146 in April 2022 was to be expected as consumers rushed to commission their systems before the end of the RHI. Six months into the new scheme and monthly installation figures have recovered to 2021 levels, with around 2500 installations per month in total.
Heat pump installers are a key part of growth in the low-carbon sector, but we need more of them to push the industry forwards and ensure we can meet the government’s ambition to bring down the cost of heat pumps and stimulate supply and demand.
What’s happening in heat pumps?
The government has said we need to reach 600,000 heat pump installations per year by 2028 to meet carbon reduction deadlines. While current installation figures are in-line with available funding under the BUS – 30,000 grants per year for three years – it’s clear the government needs to build momentum quickly.
The BUS is just one of the mechanisms designed to scale-up production and remove the cost barrier, reducing the cost of heat pumps by up to 50% by 2025 and towards parity with gas boilers by 2030.
Others include:
- Future Homes and Buildings Standard – legislation will be introduced in 2025 requiring new build homes to be future-proofed with low-carbon heating; heat pumps are expected to meet most of this demand.
- Interim uplift to Part L – new heating systems must meet minimum standards for energy efficiency and be designed to operate at a maximum of 55°C (compared to 80°C under previous standards), supporting the case for low-temperature heating technologies.
- Market-based mechanism – manufacturers will be mandated to sell a certain /equal number of heat pumps from 2024. This is a bold step that, combined with the Part L uplift, sets the bar for energy efficiency in buildings and firmly cements the role of renewables into law.
- ‘Green’ levies – there has been talk of shifting green levies from gas to electricity within the next 8 years to incentivise uptake of electric heating systems. However, with the current spike in gas prices the government will be mindful of increasing the cost of energy bills for the 85% of consumers who still rely on gas central heating.
- Research and development –To facilitate essential R&D, the government is providing £60 million of funding through the Net Zero Innovation Portfolio (NZIP) to improve the efficiency of heat pump manufacturing and develop ‘smart grid ready’ products.
- Financial investment – In total, the government is investing £1.6 billion per annum improve technologies and manufacturing processes, plus £1.58 billion of subsidy for fuel energy pricing on electricity. These are huge numbers that provide a clear signal to private investors that the era of fossil fuels is coming to an end.
Is heat pump training worth it?
Experienced gas and heating installers will make up the majority of the low-carbon workforce, transferring their knowledge, experience and skills into this emerging market. While training is relatively quick and easy – an air source heat pump upskill course takes around a week to complete and costs around £700 – I appreciate there are other considerations, including MCS certification and uncertainty about local demand.
However, the past year has seen developments in this area providing different routes of entry and levels of support for installers who want to test the waters of the low-carbon sector.
MCS Made Easy: an online tool designed to guide installers through MCS, breaking down the process into manageable chunks and providing fully integrated support through every stage. The service can be used for both first-time applicants and MCS certified companies looking for help with their annual surveillance.
MCS Umbrella Scheme: allows trained heat pump installers to subcontract their services to an operator company who takes final responsibility for the process, including design, specification, heat loss calculations and MCS certification.
Jobs come through the operator company, allowing installers to assess demand in their area and build their reputation without any marketing efforts. This is a low-cost approach enables installers to gain valuable experience in a low-risk environment and build up towards full certification (and increased profits) at their own pace.
Embrace the future
The growth of the heat pump market is based on more than politicians’ promises. The boiler manufacturer mandate will work alongside other subsidy-based and regulatory policy approaches to establish an overall policy framework that will push the low-carbon industry forward over the next decade and ultimately transform the heating sector.
Without a healthy supply of skilled heat pump installers, however, we will not be able to deliver on these aims. The heating sector is diversifying in terms of technologies and existing installers must do the same.
Don’t just dismiss upskilling as something that is too expensive and time consuming – for most experienced installers, heat pump training takes just a week and with varying levels of support for new entrants, early adopters stand to gain a business advantage over their competitors.
