Despite a strong start, sales of heat pumps have shrunk over the course of 2023, new data from the European Heat Pump Association (EHPA) shows.
After a good first quarter, second and third quarter sales of space and hot water heat pumps are down in Europe. In many countries, sales are also lower than in the same quarter of 2022. On average in the ten countries analysed, the third quarter 2023 sees a sales decline of 14% compared to 2022*.
This drop is part of an alarming trend that puts reaching Europe’s decarbonisation targets at risk.
The declining sales can be linked to ambiguous communication from policy-makers as well as changing government policies and subsidies, which have thrown consumers into uncertainty. The drop is also due to fossil gas prices falling, while the price of electricity – which is used by most heat pumps – remains unchanged, making heat pumps less financially attractive to operate.
These points must be addressed in the European Commission’s upcoming heat pump action plan – due to be published in early 2024.
National governments should likewise propose solutions to these issues in their national energy and climate plans and work in particular on making energy taxation more balanced, phasing out fossil subsidies and reducing the burden of electricity from taxes and levies.
Thomas Nowak, secretary general of EHPA said:
“Heat pumps are the most cost-efficient, climate-neutral way of heating and cooling, yet consumers see them as expensive and an uncertain bet. Policy-makers need to correct this by committing unambiguously to heat pump technologies and by establishing favourable economic conditions for the cleanest heating solution available. As an immediate measure, policy must aim at reducing the cost of electricity for residential, commercial and industrial applications. It should not be more than twice the price of fossil gas.”
Heat pump manufacturers plan investments worth €7 billion
European heat pump manufacturers are investing in production capacity and logistics.
The European Heat Pump Association has published an assessment of press releases and social media announcements that have been published in the last three months.
The total amount of announced investments to be implemented over the next three years is almost €7 billion.
REPowerEU foresees a significant increase in heat pump manufacturing and deployment. A potential lack of installer skills is widely discussed. What finds less interest is the consequences of this tremendous growth in manufacturing capacity both for the heat pump units and for components.
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