UK pre sales manager for heat pumps at Panasonic, Tony Lathey, said: “We are delighted that the government is showing commitment to the green agenda, offering homeowners very real incentives to switch to renewable energy technologies.
'We are fully behind the new green 10-Point Plan for the Prime Minister’s ‘Green Industrial Revolution’. We have seen strong interest in our air source heat pumps for heating and hot water provision but extending the grant programme will ensure that more homeowners can access funding for their home energy improvement schemes and we anticipate this will greatly assist the market.”
The company said that as well as helping to reduce carbon emissions, this will help safeguard and create many new jobs and career opportunities in the sector to further boost the economy and at the same time help achieve the net zero targets for a more sustainable future.
Throughout this time, Panasonic is running a cashback promotion to incentivise both installers and homeowners by offering cashback of up to £600 to homeowners and £800 to installers on their Aquarea heat pumps installations.
Mark Wilkins, head of training and external affairs at Vaillant Group, welcomed the 10-Point Plan as a positive step in the right direction, but cautioned that questions still remain.
“The development of hydrogen-ready boilers is one piece of the puzzle; the real challenge comes with creating the industry to produce hydrogen sustainably, with the skills and network to deliver it to UK homes and businesses on the scale required.
'We look forward to the anticipated National Hydrogen Strategy to provide more detail so that we can to train our gas and heating installers and provide them with the skills needed for the future energy mix.
“We also welcome the extension to the GHG. The extension to the deadline will allow more time for installers in the UK to get trained up and obtain MCS and TrustMark certifications.
“However, to meet the Government’s target to install 600,000 heat pumps every year by 2028, more needs to be done. At the moment, there are just under 1,000 MCS installers – nowhere near enough to deliver 600,000 units per year.
“Not only do we need more installers to meet these ambitious targets, but more heat pumps. To enable our industry to make the levels of investment needed and expand production, we need a long-term roadmap from the Government setting out how the UK is going to decarbonise heat in its homes. We’ve put a lot of investment into heat pump technology, but without a consistent, long-term policy in place, not everyone in our industry is able to draw up adequate plans to ramp up production. Furthermore, a joined-up approach between all stakeholders involved in making decarbonised homes a reality would not be possible.
Steve Richmond, head of marketing and technical for REHAU Building Solutions said: “The Government’s pledge to install 600,000 heat pumps annually by 2028 – 20 times more than the current deployment – is an encouraging sign that we are moving toward a low-carbon future.
“There is no denying that the net zero emissions targets are ambitious, but by implementing proven solutions in the short-to-medium-term, we can set a solid foundation from which exciting future innovations can build. This includes hydrogen production, which is still very much in the research and development stages, and new generations of heat pumps and district heating schemes. All technologies will play their part in making net zero a reality, but tried-and-tested solutions should be prioritised in the short term if we are to achieve our goals.
LG’s heating manager for the UK and Ireland Andy Hooper said: “This sets out a clear roadmap for the heating market over the coming years and enables manufacturers like LG to invest in greater training capacity through its academies and more people to support the sales of our extensive heat pump product range. What we need now is for heating installers to align to these changes and contact companies like LG to understand this technology better and embrace the change in what they do, day to day.
“The PM pledged to install 600,000 heat pumps every year by 2028. Make no mistake, this is a massive win for installers and manufacturers alike, but it’s an ambitious plan that has to be approached carefully.”
LG has already stepped up its efforts to get more and more installers trained and ready to begin the heat pump revolution. Training takes place at its two training centres – at its head office in Weybridge and at GREenergy training centre in Chesterfield close to the M1.