Addressing the challenges raised in the UK Government’s 10-point plan and the Heat and Buildings Strategy to decarbonise heat by 2050 requires heat pumps to reach a scale of installations exceeding 600,000 a year by 2028.

Kensa has long pioneered the installation of ground source heat pump technology connected to Shared Ground Loop Arrays and Ambient Heat Networks as a solution to this challenge of scaling up.

Whilst this is not a new concept and smaller Networked Heat Pumps systems have been installed successfully, so far this is still not a mainstream solution. The Heat Pump Ready projects will focus efforts on street-by-street installations, demonstrating a tangible pathway for a rapid transition to renewable energy.

BEIS has announced that Heat Pump Ready Programme Stream 1 has awarded a total of £2,055,202.43 to 11 projects across Great Britain as part of its £1 billion Net Zero Innovation Portfolio (NZIP), which aims to accelerate the commercialisation of innovative clean energy technologies and processes through the 2020s and 2030s.

Kensa will be working together with teams of skilled partner organisations from across local authorities, energy companies, finance, community energy, academia and top-tier consultancies to develop feasibility plans for four innovative community heat pump solutions in Leeds, Greenwich, Teignbridge and Bridgend.

Part of the challenge with these projects will be developing compelling offerings to the complex networks of stakeholders in each location and engaging them with the benefits of ground source heat pumps and a different solution to the problem of decarbonization.

Ieman Barmaki, sustainability director for Kensa, said: “We’re excited to be working with the very best partners on these community-wide heat pump solutions which have the potential to change the way we heat our homes here in the UK.

“Together we are trying to break down the perceived barriers to the widescale electrification of heat and showcase to policymakers and the public that Networked Heat Pumps can achieve mass decarbonization goals at scale for the lowest economic and societal cost.”