Heat Pump: Hardly Any Linkage to Renewable Energy

A survey by the German Energy Agency (dena) shows that Germany is considered as a role model in regards to their energy politics, but neither in the sector traffic nor heat. This is confirmed by a study of EuPD Research, which displays the portfolios of German energy suppliers: Companies and energy suppliers are missing out on the potential of selling their products as packages connecting the fields of electricity and heat; this especially concerns heat pumps. The coalition agreement of the CDU, CSU and SPD in Germany (status: 7 February 2018) revealed, that the integration of the sectors heat, mobility and electricity, in connection with storage technologies, is to be promoted.

For heat pumps to function CO2-neutrally they have to be powered with regenerative energy. This can be realized through self-produced electricity generated by wind turbines, solar panels, cogeneration units or through green power provided by an energy supplier. The sale of a photovoltaic (PV) system combined with a heat pump, or the operation of heat pumps with real green electricity is the exception. Two out of three new buildings in Germany still operate with oil and gas instead of heat pumps. E3/DC is trying to speed up the process: Every tenth sold PV system in single-family houses (data basis of E3/DC House Plants) operates with a heat pump. In 2017 over 500 heat pumps were connected to the E3/DC House Plant.

Companies like E3/DC, which for a long time have had the understanding that the energy business is a systemized business, advise their customers on the advantages of heat pumps, and, in return, partners of E3/DC show their customers the benefits of connecting the heat pump to the S10 House Plant.

Exactly this can be seen in the above figure and in the short paper. The surveyed house owners, who already own products of E3/DC rate Waterkotte 19% higher than the house owners, who are not customers of E3/DC. This may not be surprising if one knows that Waterkotte is a partner of E3/DC. This shows that the customer is proactively informed. The contact rate additionally emphasizes this: While only 36% of the house owners (no E3/DC customers) have been in contact with heat pumps, 68% of the E3/DC customers know about this technology. 

On the „Energy-self-sufficient-study – Integrated Energy as a solution“

Within in the „Energy-self-sufficient-study – Integrated Energy as a solution“, a survey of 1021 house owners (panel) throughout Germany, the preferences on the sectors renewable energy, electric mobility and heat are depicted. The regional allocation of single-family and apartment houses was considered in the selection of the sample, which allows comparisons among the federal states. The study was conducted by the market research institute EuPD Research on behalf of E3/DC. The survey is accompanied by an inquiry of 1,003 E3/DC customers.

In the upcoming months further exclusive data on energy independence and integrated energy will be published. Learn, among others, about the motivation of house owners regarding the purchase of electric cars and heat pumps and their take on energy related topics within the frame of current crises, such as the diesel scandal, and the attitude towards the importance of energy independence.