Hybrid Heat Pumps

Tender description

Notice summary: The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) wishes to commission a project to advance our understanding of the potential role of hybrid heat pump (HHP) systems (as defined below) in long-term heat decarbonisation. Heat refers to any energy that is used, or might be used, for the purposes of heating or cooling in buildings, including cooking, providing hot water and in industrial processes. The Climate Change Act places a statutory obligation on the UK Government to make an 80% reduction in 1990 greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Achieving nearly zero carbon heating continues to be identified by government analysis as an important feature of any lowest cost pathway to 2050. Heat currently accounts for ~48% of UK energy consumption and approximately one third of our greenhouse gas emissions. On the 14th December 2016, Baroness Neville Rolfe gave a speech at the Policy Exchange's Heat Summit on heat decarbonisation. For more information see Baroness Neville Rolfe's keynote speech from the Policy Exchange event "The Heat Summit: How Can We Decarbonise Heating?" Description: Hybrid Heat Pumps project is looking to provide insight and new evidence on the extent to which Hybrid Heat Pumps could play a key role in long-term decarbonisation of heat. The objectives of the project are: • To understand the current in-situ performance of hybrid heat pumps; • To develop robust assumptions of performance and cost (capital and running) changes to 2050 in light of various scales of deployment and product innovation; • To assess potential for innovation to drive changes to hybrid heat pump technology through to 2050 and make HHPs an increasingly attractive consumer proposition (in particular when compared to standard electric heat pumps). For the purposes of this study, hybrid technologies are defined as systems combining an electric driven air or ground source heat pump with a gas boiler (including dedicated controls). Specific appliances under review should include split and integrated packaged systems as well as add-on solutions. The precise research questions that we are looking for the contractor to address are included in the ITT document attached. The contractors will be invited to propose a methodology which would best meet the overall aim and objectives above for approval by BEIS. The work is expected to include, but may not be limited to, the following methods: • Collation, analysis and comparison of relevant product and performance data; • Literature and previous studies review; • Industry consultation/expert interviews and opinion (expected to include product designers, manufacturers, installers, technical experts, trade bodies, researchers and academia); • Analysis, synthesis and modelling; • Documentation.