Renewable Energy: The UK has installed a record number of Heat Pumps in 2023

Households in the UK have installed a record number of green energy upgrades in the first half of 2023, according to industry figures.

The ‘green energy’ upgrades include thousands of heat pumps and solar panel technologies.

The figures come at a welcome time for the government, as they look towards attempting to restore some degree of confidence in the UK’s faltering climate plans.

Despite the recent missteps, the industry’s accreditation body the ‘Microgeneration Certification Scheme’ (MCS), said the green energy boom has put households on track to install more renewable energy than the last record set in 2012.

The MCS is an independent certification scheme that certifies microgeneration (renewable energy) products and installers.

The number of heat pumps installed during a singular month reached 3,000 for the first time and the numbers were approaching 20,000 installs for the first six months of 2023, according to the data.

Positive Signs But Not Enough

Whilst these signs are positive, even if heat pumps continued at the same pace throughout the second half of the year – installations would still only reach 6% of the government's target.

The UK target is to install 600,000 heat pumps a year by 2028.

The MCS believes that one of the biggest barriers to the government’s heat pump ambitions is the need to recruit enough qualified, skilled installers to meet the demand for trustworthy advice and installations.

Companies, such as London-based Fischer Future Heat are offering free training courses for heating engineers to aid with the transition to renewables.

The news of the upswing for renewables comes parallel to fresh polling results showing public concern about climate change has remained high throughout high-pressure events such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the cost of living crisis.

There is also country-wide support for net zero policy, including those that would involve lifestyle changes.

Support But Fragile?

Whilst barriers exist, a lack of public support for a transition away from fossil fuels is not one of them.

Introducing measures to meet net zero carbon emissions without a referendum was deemed favourable in another national poll conducted by YouGov by a ratio of more than 2 to 1. Whilst there have been carbon emission measures brought in over the year with more set to be announced, including the gas boiler ban in 2025 - a critical review of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) by the House of Lords’ Environment and Climate Change Committee has called for urgent reforms.

In response to the question, Why has the uptake been so poor despite the support for change with the public? The Chair of the committee Baroness Parminter, said the use of the BUS has been “disappointingly low”. The committee also identified a number of concerns about the current length of the incentive, the eligibility criteria to receive funding, and whether sufficient funding was available.?

Perhaps the biggest cause for concern is the fact that less than 50% of the public had any knowledge of a heat pump.

The committee concluded that calling for an independent advisory body to advise homeowners and consumers on the most suitable systems for use in their homes would be the next positive step. Fischer Future Heat already offers a free heating survey that provides this function.

A Growing Unrest

With support high within the public and record numbers of green upgrades being installed throughout the first half of 2023, there is growing desperation and exasperation for the government to show clear and consistent leadership on climate change.

Recent news over mountains of red tape surrounding the construction of UK windfarms costing the taxpayer around ￡1.5bn a year, 100 new oil and gas licenses being awarded for exploration in the north sea and an increasing number of extreme global weather events has forced the very present effects of climate change directly into the public eye.?

The government is seemingly jeopardising any goodwill it has gained over the upwards trajectory of green installations in homes and risks losing consumers completely.

Ian Rippin, the chief executive of MCS, said:

“As the cost of energy continues to grow, we are seeing more people turn to renewable technology to generate their own energy and heat at home.”

The way to keep the green numbers ticking upwards is to keep the costs down. Sentiments echoed by Fischer Future Heat CEO, Keith Bastian:

?“We have to change the way we look at the (energy) systems and make them work for the consumer. If they change over to renewables or another form of heating, I'm a firm believer that you cannot expect to put the customer in a worse-off situation in terms of comfort or price because of it, otherwise, they're never going to adopt it.”