Summary:
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2. Following the EU Green Deal initiative, policy makers in the EU Member States can act on two levels to achieve decarbonization: The most polluting heating systems must be phased out and renewable technologies need a level playing field.
3. Every euro invested in heat pump technology is a euro invested in local job creation.
Decarbonizing
Why heat pumps?
Today, the European building stock is responsible for approximately 36% of all CO2 emissions in the EU. Taking into account that almost 50% of
1. Heat pumps are a proven solution, and
2. Heat pumps are a low carbon heating technology. For each kWh of required heat, the carbon impact of a heat pump today is about half of a high efficiency gas boiler, with an even lower carbon footprint potential due to the further decarbonization of the EU electricity production.
3. Heat pumps make use of renewable energies such as thermal energy from the air, the water or the ground. These renewable energy sources are abundantly available in
4. Heat pumps will increasingly use renewable electricity and are on the way to being a fully climate-neutral solution.
5. In addition, heat pumps are essential to enable balancing of the power grid, thus supporting the further deployment of a renewable energy production.
Investing in heat pumps also boosts EU economic growth as these products are widely developed and manufactured in
Every euro invested in heat pump technology is a euro invested in local job creation. The heat pump industry as a whole currently employs 225,000 people in
End carbon-based incentives
Following the EU Green Deal initiative, policy makers in the EU Member States can act on two levels to achieve decarbonization.
First, EU Member States could commit to ending the use of fossil fuels. The most polluting heating systems must be phased out.
Secondly, renewable technologies also need a level playing field. The gap between electricity and gas prices in many Member States is too high to make a heat pump an economically attractive investment for EU citizens. Incentives can bridge that gap for a certain period, but in the long run, the cost of energy should reflect the carbon intensity more. Carbon pricing can contribute to further emissions reduction by extending the EU Emission Trading System (ETS) to all emissions of fossil fuel combustion in buildings and revising the Energy Taxation directive.
Motivating European consumers
The industry innovates relentlessly to make heat pumps attractive through a mix of product features, pricing, design, and installer- and end user friendliness. The industry can put more effort in explaining the benefits of heat pumps so that end users become more aware of them.
"In the short term, government incentives can help accelerate the transition to carbon-neutral heating and make heat pumps accessible to all Europeans, but in the long term accurate energy prices and a correct indication of the energy and carbon performance of a building need to be the end user motivations to invest in heat pump technology," adds
The examples from other European countries show us this strategy works. For instance,
What's next?
"Daikin has set itself the ambition to become a carbon-neutral company on a global scale by 2050. Decarbonizing the heating sector in
About Daikin
Globally, Daikin is renowned for its pioneering approach to product development and the unrivalled quality and versatility of its integrated solutions. With more than 90 years' experience in the design and manufacture of heating and cooling technologies, Daikin is a market leader in heat pump technology.
Press contact
Karl Vanderfaeillie
FINN
karl.vanderfaeillie@finn.agency
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