Four manufacturers make ‘hydrogen-ready’ boilers cost pact.
[HVN Plus] Ideal, Baxi, Worcester Bosch and Vaillant have agreed that a new generation of boilers that can be converted to run on hydrogen will cost no more than equivalent systems running on natural gasFour major manufacturers have agreed to sell ‘hydrogen-ready’ boilers at the same cost as their equivalent technologies that currently run-on natural gas.
Worcester Bosch, Vaillant, Baxi and Ideal have jointly agreed that their new boiler technologies, which are designed to be converted to run fully on hydrogen gas following conversion by an engineer, will not cost more than a natural gas system on a volume basis.
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Confirmation of the hydrogen ready cost agreement was made in a letter delivered to Kwasi Kwarteng, secretary of state for the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
The announcement marks the latest in a series of cross-industry commitments from boiler makers to support a shift towards using hydrogen to heat homes as opposed to natural gas.
A trade body representing boiler manufacturers said last year that an agreement had been reached around the technical definition of a hydrogen ready boiler. This is a system that can operate on natural gas and then be converted by a qualified engineer to operate safely and efficiently on hydrogen within an hour.
Next steps
Mike Foster, chief executive of the boiler industry trade body, the Energy and Utilities Alliance (EUA), said the agreements around the cost and definition for a hydrogen ready system was a huge development in the industry’s efforts to address consumer concerns about climate change.
Mike Foster said,
Our own research tells us that consumers want to do their bit to reduce the impact of their homes and help deliver a greener future, but are concerned about the cost of some low carbon technologies.
“This price-promise from the ‘big four’ ensures that consumers will be able to access an affordable low carbon heat and hot water solution.”
Mr Foster said he hoped that the cost pledge would shift perceptions around the significance of hydrogen heat to the UK’s net zero aims.
He said, “The Committee on Climate Change (CCC), which advises the government, assumed that a hydrogen-ready boiler would cost £100 more than a natural gas boiler and that the total cost to consumers of decarbonising their homes would be £2.3 billion. The price-promise is a great deal for consumers.”
The pricing commitment made by the four boiler manufacturers was possible as a result of research looking at using existing components and technologies in the design of hydrogen ready systems, according to Mr Foster.
He said, “Hydrogen-ready boilers will work in the same way as natural gas boilers with no changes required to pipework, radiators or the installation of a water tank.”
“The boiler manufacturers have developed a boiler that works; they support a 2025 mandatory roll-out of the technology and now they’ve found a way to keep costs down. The Big Four boiler companies compete ferociously against each other, but they have come together for the benefit of UK consumers and the good of the planet.”
Research and development looking at hydrogen as a possible alternative to natural gas heat is being backed by the UK Government as one of several possible options to support the decarbonisation of buildings up to 2050. Hydrogen creates zero carbon emissions at the point of use. However, it does presently rely on fossil fuels to ensure sufficient production of the gas is possible.
Hydrogen potential
Influential bodies such as the CCC and a number of energy and heat consultants have argued over the last year that hydrogen is unlikely to be a direct replacement for the existing natural gas network that supplies the majority of the UK’s domestic heat at present.
A range of technologies are instead expected to be needed to decarbonise heat, with a significant proportion of homes predicted to adopt heat pumps or be connected to district heat systems.
The delayed Heat and Buildings Strategy that is now expected to be published later this year will set out more detail on the type of technologies the government will look to encourage and subsidise.
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Four manufacturers make ‘hydrogen-ready’ boilers cost pact, July 29, 2021
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