SP Energy Networks (SPEN) has developed a new modelling tool to predict future electricity demand from low-carbon heating.
The distribution network operator said the Heat-Up tool will allow it to estimate the size of heat pumps required to warm homes in its area based on their characteristics and plan investments in grid reinforcements to accommodate the resulting rise in electricity demand.
SPEN said the tool, which was developed in partnership with Field Dynamics using £129,000 of funding from the Network Innovation Allowance, can also be used by governments and local authorities to understand the scale of investment required to meet climate change goals, including the target to install 600,000 heat pumps per year by 2028.
It said the findings from Heat-Up will be combined with the results from EV-Up – a similar modelling tool the company has developed to predict the uptake of electricity vehicles – to gain a full picture of the impacts of the decarbonisation of heat and transport on the power grid.
Scott Mathieson, director of network planning and regulation at SPEN, said: “This year, the UK will welcome the world’s leaders to Glasgow for the UN’s COP26 summit on climate change. Our government has ambitious goals when it comes to net zero emissions targets and if we’re to meet them, introducing low carbon heating into homes will be crucial.
“I’m proud that we’re leading the way to net zero through innovations like the Heat-Up tool. Learnings from this project will enable more people to switch to low carbon heating, which helps the environment and ultimately enables us to provide a more efficient service for customers and drive down costs.”
Charlie Gilbert, a partner at Field Dynamics, said: “Reducing emissions from residential heating is one of the great decarbonisation challenges of our times. It has been fantastic to collaborate with the team at SP Energy Networks to develop a truly innovative methodology to assess the combination of policy, technology and environmental factors that impact the network.
“The outputs of this project have the potential to not just inform future investments, but also a far wider range of critical net zero questions.”