Heat pumps are hot (and cool)
The energy crisis has prompted a major surge in demand for heat pumps and the technology is widely recognised as a no-regret option to decarbonise heating and cooling, but many are still to be convinced
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Gas heating is not an affordable heating option anymore. Instead, the demand and uptake of heat pumps in Europe’s building stock have seen a major surge in the past few months. Global heat pump sales rose 15% in 2021. In Germany alone, demand rose by 25% in the first half of 2022 year-on-year. And in Finland, by as much as 80% year-on-year.
Heat pumps bring multiple benefits. So much so the European Commission and the International Energy Agency (IEA) have praised the technology: it saves emissions from heating (and cooling), it is proven that it can be installed in existing buildings and it brings multiple advantages for our grids in helping to electrify faster. Russia’s unprovoked war on Ukraine has had a huge impact on a market that has been in constant development for the past ten years.
In this episode, we discuss the present and future of heat pumps in Europe—and dispel the myths around it—with Thomas Nowak, Secretary General of the European Heat Pump Association (EHPA) in Brussels. Before working for the EHPA, he worked on several projects on the economic and social benefits of renewable energy. Thomas holds a university degree in business administration and economics.
Enjoy the dispatch!
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Thomas Nowak
Sam Morgan
Anna Gumbau
@Policy Dispatch
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Art director: Trine Natskår.
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