(Image: Chris Carberry, Director of Smart Solutions at ScottishPower)
“We need to get rid of petrol, diesel and gas,” he explains. “The three big solutions are EV (electric vehicle) charging, solar panels and batteries, and heat pumps.”
Chris adds: “The UK is far behind other European countries in terms of embracing the change that is needed – around 60% of Norway’s buildings are fitted with heat pumps, for example, followed closely by Sweden at 43% and Finland at 41%. In the UK, we’re at just 1%.”
ScottishPower introduced its EV charging schemes in 2019; solar and heat pump technologies followed in 2021, but as Rob McGaughey, the company’s Head of Smart Heat and Cities, points out, these are not ‘new’ ideas.
“Heat pumps have been around since the 1850s,” he explains. “Lord Kelvin first proposed using them to heat buildings in 1852, so as a concept they are not new, they have just got a lot better over the last 150 years.
“It’s been a quiet revolution. With EV cars, you can spot them on the roads; solar panels are equally visible on the roofs of our homes. Heat pumps tend to be hidden around the side of your house, out of sight.”
Feedback from customers, however, has been extremely positive, adds Rob.
“What we have learned over the last three years is that customers love the different way heat pumps work,” he says.
“With boilers, the temperature rises to a certain point, then it drops, so it is either too hot or too cold, or for a small amount of the time, just right. Heat pumps get rid of that problem, as they set the heat at whatever level of comfort you like, and maintain it at that level consistently.”
In the last two years, ScottishPower has installed 3,750 heat pumps, mainly through the Energy Companies Obligation 4 (ECO4), for the most vulnerable in society; and through the Home Energy Scotland Grant and the Boiler Upgrade Scheme in England and Wales.
ScottishPower was also the first energy company in the UK to introduce a dedicated heat pump service plan.
“There are about a quarter of a million heat pumps installed in Britain, so we want to help stimulate the market and show existing gas engineers it’s worth retraining and upskilling,” says Chris. “That is what a just transition looks like.”
Chris and Rob are keen to debunk some of the biggest myths surrounding smart technology in general, and heat pumps in particular.
“One of the biggest is that heat pumps are noisy, but actually, they have a similar decibel level to your fridge-freezer,” says Rob.
“Another is that they won’t work in a power cut – but that is also true of a gas boiler. Thankfully we do not have long or prolific power cuts in this country.”
Analysis by ScottishPower and WWF UK has already shown benefits heat pumps can bring, from savings on energy bills to adding to a property’s value.
Heat pumps are efficient – for every one kilowatt of electricity put in, a heat pump provides around four kilowatts of heat, explains Chris.
“The technology has advanced considerably in recent years and while it may not be perfect, neither are the systems it is replacing,” he says. “Smart technology is making a huge and positive difference to people’s lives.”
Rob agrees. “It’s about helping people understand what they stand to gain, rather than simply repeating the same old tropes and myths,” he adds.
One of the biggest benefits of smart technology is the flexibility it gives customers, who are now often producers of energy as well as consumers. “All of these technologies give you the opportunity to say – okay, when am I going to use my energy?” explains Chris.
“Programming allows you to decide when your EV is charging, when your heat pump comes on and goes off, for example.
“As well as solar panels saving you money on your electricity bill, you can also be rewarded for when you use your energy, or sell it back to the grid. You can save money by using appliances during cheaper periods, for instance, often outwith peak times, or by using them less often.”
One of the biggest barriers for customers as they decarbonise their homes is cost.
ScottishPower is working with Santander UK on a new initiative which will offer incentives and energy bill credits to customers who take out low-interest loans to finance renewable energy home projects.
“Customers are aware of the benefits of making these changes to their homes, in terms of saving money on their bills and increasing the value of their homes,” explains Chris.
“If you try to do everything – EV, solar, heat pump – all at once, then of course, that is a huge investment and in reality, that’s not how it works.
“People will change their car every three or four years, their boiler perhaps after 10 years, they might think about solar if they are moving home or remortgaging – so those are the cycles to consider.”
He adds: “We do need more competitive, green-backed finance from the banks, that recognises these upgrades are an investment. ScottishPower is leading the way by looking at how the financial sector and the energy industry can come together to help people.”
There also needs to be more clarity around the pathway to net zero, he says.
“Homeowners need to be able to work out what it means for their lifestyles, their homes, their budgets – and to know that with support from governments and the energy companies, they can get there,” he adds.
“There are thousands of companies supplying low-carbon tech out there, and it can be difficult to navigate. Scottish Power is a brand people know and trust and we are here to support them for the long term.”
Rob adds: “We will continue to innovate in terms of tariffs, service plans, maintenance and products, and we will take our customers on that journey with us.”
AROUND 1.7m gas boilers are replaced or installed every year across the UK, compared to between 60,000 and 70,000 heat pumps.
“We have a long way to go to flip that round,” acknowledges Rob. “There is a lot of room for growth in this space.”
While the scale of the problem is significant – there are 23m gas boilers remaining in the UK – the country is on a “strong pathway”, points out Rob, with much cause for hope.
“When we put our minds to something we can do it,” he says.
“Consider the transition to gas central heating in the 50s and 60s. That was a government-led initiative and it was very successful.
“Closer to home, in the 1970s Glasgow, only one in four tenements had an inside toilet, until a woman called Annie showed it was possible to get rid of the ‘cludgie’ outside and install one in the house – and that led to a revolution.”
He adds: “With the right goal and the right co-ordination, these things can happen.”
Both Chris and Rob have more than 20 years’ experience working with ScottishPower and they agree they have seen significant changes in that time.
Even their job titles would have been unimaginable 10 years ago, they admit. “I have had a few job titles in my career but I think this is the first one my teenage kids understand,” jokes Chris.
“But when I first started, the market was just opening up, and we were focused on growing the business and giving customers the best service possible. What we are doing now, supplying smart technology to help customers manage their own energy inside their homes, is a massive change.”
He adds: “We are now on a mission to get rid of gas, petrol and diesel. We know we are part of the solution.
“The two biggest crises we are facing in our society today are climate and cost of living and it’s a privilege to have a job where I am able to do something about both.”
Rob agrees. “What I love about ScottishPower is that we can see the transformative power technology can have,” he says.
“It’s about more than just carbon, it’s about people’s bills and comfort, and the bigger societal impact –making sure everyone is supported to make the transition to greener living and no one is left behind.”
