Heat pump installations in UK homes increased by nearly a fifth last year, with over 200,000 now having been installed across the country.
That is according to new data from the MCS Foundation, which indicates a 19% increase for all heat pump types in 2023 when compared to 2022, which itself was a record year.
This has been driven by government grants, with applications for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme up 50% following a grant increase from £5,000 to £7,500 for an air-source heat pump last October.
Growth looks set to continue, with the government currently consulting on plans to require all new homes to have a heat pump, or be connected to a low-carbon heat network, from next year.
New rules are also coming into force this year that will require boiler manufacturers to sell a proportionate amount of heat pumps relative to their boiler sales, under the Clean Heat Market Mechanism.
However, the MCS Foundation warned that heat pump installations will need to accelerate more than tenfold within the next four years to meet the government target of 600,000 a year by 2028.
Director of external affairs, David Cowdrey, said: “While we can expect a continued upward trend in heat pump installations, thanks to the introduction of higher grants, we will still need additional policies to achieve the exponential growth that is required now.
“Such policies should include reducing electricity costs to encourage heat pump uptake while tackling fuel poverty.
“This could be achieved by moving social and environmental tariffs from electricity bills into general taxation, and would make running heat pumps substantially cheaper than a gas boiler.”
The data also shows that demand for renewable energy technologies in general reached its highest ever level in the UK last year, with over 220,000 installations made, surpassing a record set more than a decade ago.
The vast majority of installations were solar panels, with nearly 190,000 households and businesses opting to install them. This is the highest number since cuts to the Feed-in Tariff subsidy in 2011.
“It is very encouraging to see the growth in all renewable energy, and particularly heat pumps,” Cowdrey continued.
“More households than ever are opting for these carbon-free and highly efficient heating systems that are zero emissions at point of use.”
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