Utility Week

18 | MAY 2022 | UTILITY WEEK Heat Conference report Raising the temperature of the debate The Future of Heat Conference brought together a wide range of players working on the decarbonisation of heat to discuss progress made and challenges ahead. The event also saw the launch of Utility Week's Heat Council. We have the technology, so what is stopping us? By James Wallin Our speakers throughout the day made it clear that there are numerous no-regrets options the UK could immediately be pro- gressing to further the aim of decarbonising heat. There were encouraging signs of pro- gress made and innovations underway but also a frustration that the pace of change is nowhere near as rapid as needed. One of the challenges is that the heat eco- system is so diverse and the implications of different pathways present such existential threats (or indeed opportunities) that a uni- fied voice has never emerged. In a bid to redress this balance, the Util- ity Week Heat Council was launched at the conference. The aim of this initiative is to provide a technology-agnostic space for all actors involved in heat decarbonisation to discuss the common challenges they face and the opportunities to collaborate to overcome them. The project was launched with a panel session featuring three experts who have helped to shape the ethos of the Heat Coun- cil. They shared some of their key areas for collaboration. Dr Madeleine Morris is a research asso- ciate at Imperial College London and a member of the Energy Revolution research consortium, which recently produced a research paper on a local approach to heat decarbonisation. She made the point that heat is inher- ently local and that councils and local busi- nesses have untapped potential as trusted agents in delivering solutions and educating consumers on their options. However, there is currently no mechanism to leverage this potential and connect these local actors to national strategies for decarbonising heat. She stressed that there was a need to ensure fair distribution of the impacts of heat decarbonisation – not just the costs but the benefits of switching to low-carbon heat. This will be achieved only through a joined- up strategy and a coherent communications drive across business and the public sector, she said. Tom Lowe is founding director of the newly formed Thermal Storage UK trade association and has previously held senior roles across energy retailers as well as work- ing at Ofgem. He highlighted the need for joined-up pol- icy on heat and for clarity on regulation of the market. However, he stressed that indus- try should not be waiting for the government or Ofgem to act but should instead be high- lighting areas where progress is being made and recommend pathways to accelerate this. He acknowledged the scale of the chal- lenge but caveated that mass transitions have been achieved in the past without access to modern technologies and processes. He pointed to the fact that in 1919 only 9% of homes were connected to the electricity grid, a figure that had risen to c66% 20 years later. He said: "We know we can do this. We've got the skills, we've got the people, we've got the technologies. It's about making it hap- pen and getting out there and putting stuff into people's homes." Jo Alsop runs The Heating Hub, an impar- tial advice service set up to help households save money and reduce emissions on their heating. She pointed out that with an esti- mated 15 million gas boilers likely to be fitted before the ban on new sales in 2035 and their current ubiquity across the country, the first step is to ensure consumers are using them as efficiently as possible. She urged energy companies, and in par- ticular retailers, to use their national reach with consumers to ensure boilers are run- ning at the correct flow temperature. She highlighted the work being done by innova- tion agency Nesta to encourage household- ers to lower the flow temperature on their combi boiler from the factory setting of 80C to 60C, without any reduction in heat. She added: "The most fruitful area for collaboration is gas boiler efficiency. It has the biggest short-term gains, it can hap- pen today and it can happen cheaply. We're talking hundreds rather than thousands of pounds. And it's not disruptive." However, she highlighted the need to nurture a workforce with the skills and the mindset to enable the transition to low- carbon heat, adding that this process was not nearly far enough advanced. These are some initial ideas on the topics the Heat Council could explore but I would be keen to hear your thoughts and to know if you would be willing to be involved. If you would like to help shape the con- versation, please contact jameswallin@fav- house.com.

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