In a report published in the summer of 2020 it was revealed that 93.3% of Scotland’s heat is produced by oil and gas. This is very high, and means that despite being one of the best countries in Europe for clean power, Scotland is one of the worse for clean heat.
Scotland have an ambitious target of being net zero by 2045. The Scottish Government announced that from 2024, all new build homes will have to have carbon-neutral heating. This will apply for all self builds and new build developments. Most scientists have advised both the Scottish & British governments that heat pumps are an ideal solution to replace gas and oil, and provide a low carbon heating and hot water solution for UK housing stock.
Heat Pumps in Scotland
The idea of a heat pump has been around for a long time, and it is a trusted form of heating. Heat pumps will help to decarbonise the housing stock of Scotland because they are an efficient, renewable source of heating. Heat pumps use stored solar heat in the ground, or surrounding air, and have the ability to produce up to 4 units of useful heat for every 1 unit of electricity consumed.
Sometimes the upfront cost of a heat pump can deter people away, however there are subsidies in place to help contribute towards this. Scotland heat pump subsidies include the new Renewable Heat Cash Back Scheme, where homeowners can apply for 75% cashback (up to a max value of £7,500) towards the cost of the heat pump installation. Another heat pump grant in Scotland is the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI), which pays homeowners for the amount of renewable heat the heat pump produces for 7 years after the installation.
Helen Malone, senior policy manager at Scottish Renewables wants to help encourage the uptake of alternative renewable options. She said:
Renewable electricity is now the cheapest form of energy generation in the world, so using this home-grown fuel instead of imported gas will increase the security of our energy supply as well as cutting costs.”
Heating & Plumbing Installers In Scotland
What happens to the existing heating & plumbing installers?
The existing heating and plumbing installers throughout Scotland, and the rest of the UK, already have the skills required to install heat pumps. With a little bit of Heat Pump Training, like that which we offer at Alto Energy, any fully qualified heating engineer would be capable of installing a heat pump.
The difficult part of a heat pump installation is making sure the correct heat pump is designed for the property it is going into, as well as ensuring that the distribution system for the property (i.e. the radiators) are sized correctly. In order for a homeowner to be eligible for any of the Government Grants mentioned above, the heat pump must be designed to MCS standards, and this must be carried out by an MCS Accredited Installer. This will ensure that the heat pump and the distribution system are designed properly, which in turn will ensure that the end user gets the best possible savings from the heat pump installation.
What if My installer is not MCS Accredited?
There are two options here. Companies can go down the route of becoming MCS themselves and they have to maintain this year on year. However unless companies are installing a large volume of heat pumps week in, week out, some kind find this to be expensive and laborious.
Which brings us on to the second option - the MCS Umbrella Scheme offered here at Alto Energy. Under our MCS umbrella scheme, we design and supply a heat pump system for a fully qualified heating and plumbing engineer to install. One of our own specialist heat pump engineers commissions the system, which ensures the installation meets the required MCS standards. We then raise all of the paperwork in the office, the end result of which is a fully qualified, Government Grant ready, heat pump system for the customer.
Installing a Heat Pump in Scotland? Then Contact Alto Energy Today!
If you are a homeowner, self-builder, developer or heating and plumbing installer with a live project in mind, please do get in touch to see how working with Alto Energy can benefit you.