Fernando de Querol Cumbrera
Research expert covering construction, loans, leasing, savings, and debt
Heat pumps in Europe - statistics & facts
Heat pumps have increased in popularity in the past years, as they have been considered essential by many European governments to reach net-zero goals. That is because in most of the European Union (EU) countries, between 60 and 90 percent of the energy consumption of households was used for heating and cooling. As heat pumps are much more environmentally friendly than other heating methods, their widespread use could significantly reduce the carbon footprint of the building sector, one of the largest emitters.
Why are heat pumps more sustainable?
As heat pumps run on electricity, their carbon footprint can vary from country to country, depending on the weight that renewable energies have on each electricity grid. Nevertheless, an uptake in the installation of heat pumps would meaningfully reduce the emissions of buildings in Germany, France, Poland, and Spain despite the differences in their energy systems. In addition to that, heat pumps are very energy efficient, which means that they generate more energy in the form of heat than they require to operate. That is possible because instead of generating heat, they move heat from the outside to the inside to heat a building. While reversible heat pumps can also do the opposite process to cool a room. Therefore, the greenhouse gas emission intensity of heat pumps in the UK is much lower than that of gas or oil boilers. Although there are several types of heat pumps with different levels of efficiency, all types are a climate-friendly alternative to fuel-based heating systems.Can public policy reduce the cost of heat pumps?
Given the climate benefits that would follow from a more widespread adoption of heat pumps throughout the whole continent, many European countries have goals and policies to help the sector. For example, several European governments have adopted legislation providing tax benefits or access to financing with favorable conditions. These measures are aimed at reducing the costs of these devices, as heat pumps were by far among the heating systems with the highest acquisition costs in Germany and other countries. In addition to the price of the devices, certain types of heat pumps have costlier installation processes. In 2021, the estimated cost of a heat pump turnkey contract in Sweden using geothermal energy in a vertical loop could be over six times higher than that of an air-to-air device. A few countries have announced bans on heating systems that use fossil fuels, which is another type of regulation through which governments can ensure the decarbonization of the heating sector.
