ScottishPower launches two clean heating schemes

ScottishPower has announced the launch of two clean heating schemes; one tackles heat pump installation, while the other provides energy-efficient heating.

The first of the two includes the appointment of ScottishPower’s second heat pump installation provider, Plug Me In.

Engineers from partners Plug Me In and Everwarm will install heat pumps for customers on behalf of ScottishPower’s Smart Solutions division across the UK.

ScottishPower installed over two thousand heat pumps over the last 18 months. Many of these installations benefitted from government grants such as the Boiler Upgrade Scheme and Energy Companies Obligation 4 (ECO4), which reduce upfront costs for customers, particularly those from lower-income households.

Robert McGaughey, head of smart heat and cities, ScottishPower, said: “We’re thrilled to see Plug Me In join our network of nationwide heat pump installers alongside Everwarm.

“With thousands installed by ScottishPower across England, Wales and Scotland, we know heat pumps are making a difference to customers across the nation, particularly those who rely on government support schemes to create warmer, healthier homes.”

The latter-mentioned scheme was launched in conjunction with Energy Systems Catapult as the company’s first trial of its Warm Home Prescription (WHP).

The trial will see the installation of improved energy efficiency measures, such as upgraded or new home insulation and even air source heat pumps, as part of ongoing efforts to support vulnerable customers living in homes with low Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) ratings.

Under the new partnership, once the Catapult team has identified those homes, ScottishPower will arrange to supply and install appropriate improvements. This may include upgraded or new insulation in lofts, cavity walls, and under floors, upgraded heating systems like air source heat pumps, and even solar panels where suitable.

The upgrades will be delivered at no cost to the householder as part of ScottishPower’s Energy Company Obligation (ECO), a UK government scheme that sets targets for all major energy suppliers to help improve homes across the country.

Rebecca Sweeney, business leader for homes at Energy Systems Catapult, said: “By investing in new and crucial ways of targeting support for households, such as the Warm Home Prescription, we can better support society’s most vulnerable.

“The first-of-its-kind partnership with ScottishPower is a step change in how we target support. We know that Warm Home Prescription delivers beneficial results for low-income and vulnerable consumers, so to be working with a national energy supplier in rolling this support out will pay dividends.”

UK’s clean heat

The UK’s adoption of clean heating measures has risen significantly in the past year, evident from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero’s (DESNZ) report that Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) applications had grown 39% YoY in March.

Newly released data shows that, since it began, the total number of BUS applications has reached 37,879. The scheme aims to incentivise and increase the deployment of low-carbon heating technologies.

Of the total number of voucher applications recorded in England and Wales since May 2022, 96% were for grants towards air source heat pump installations, a trend that has been evident since the scheme’s beginning.

On a more specific level, the UK government recently awarded almost £1 million to Bristol-based startup Nusku to develop air source heat pump technology, aiming to build cheaper and faster installation heat pumps.

The startup was formed in early 2022 by Russel Murchie, Matthew Whitefoot and Andy Mckay, and the total investment includes a grant of over £700,000 from the government.

DESNZ’s grant, awarded via the government’s Heat Pump Ready Programme – part of the £1 billion Net Zero Innovation Portfolio – will fund Nusku’s product testing at the University of Salford’s Energy House. It already has an office at the University of the West of England’s innovation centre, Future Space.