New Energy World™
New Energy World™ embraces the whole energy industry as it connects and converges to address the decarbonisation challenge. It covers progress being made across the industry, from the dynamics under way to reduce emissions in oil and gas, through improvements to the efficiency of energy conversion and use, to cutting-edge initiatives in renewable and low-carbon technologies.
How decarbonising heat can support the UK energy transition
15/5/2024
8 min read
Feature
With just over 25 years to go before the net zero target, the UK government and the energy industry should consider the benefits of decarbonising natural gas heating alongside electrification, contends John Elsegood for Xoserve, the gas industry’s central data services provider (CDSP).
Achieving net zero places a heavy emphasis on electrification, whether for heating, transport or power generation. To support the decarbonisation of domestic heat, the UK government aims to install 600,000 heat pumps per year by 2028.
Since the Boiler Upgrade Scheme was increased from £5,000 to £7,500 to encourage households to replace fossil fuel heating systems, the number of heat pumps installed has risen significantly. With this inevitable increase in electricity consumption, we must ask ourselves: How will Britain’s power grid withstand the additional strain, while supplying enough renewable power to meet demand?
UK is dependent on fossil fuels
As a nation, the UK remains heavily dependent on natural gas for electricity production and heating. As inconvenient grid constraints and renewable storage technology still remain relatively new, the combined efforts of wind, solar and hydropower, for now, cannot provide enough reliable, on-demand access to power for the country. Although the UK needs to phase out fossil fuels – such as, coal, natural gas and oil – a zero-carbon form of gas has a critical role to play in the energy transition as a power source. A robust future system that provides reliable, affordable and sustainable energy must take an integrated approach by combining renewables, gas and nuclear.