New analysis from the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) shows that heat pumps would mean less imported energy, with a household using only half as much imported primary energy with a heat pump as with a gas boiler.

By 2030, if the renewables roll out continues to accelerate, a heat pump would be using just 1.3MWh of imported primary energy, 55 per cent less than today. By contrast, a gas boiler will be 80 per cent dependent on imports, as North Sea output continues its ongoing decline, using 7.6MWh of imported gas in 2030, a third more than in 2024. This means that a heat pump would use as little as a sixth (17 per cent) as much imported energy as the gas boiler in 2030.

Commenting on the analysis, Jess Ralston, energy analyst at ECIU said: “If you want to be heating your home on homegrown, British energy then a heat pump is the way to go. This ‘energy patriotism’ for heating is helping the UK as a whole to wean itself of foreign energy imports, boosting the UK’s energy security as British renewables ramp up rapidly.”

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