SSEN’s data-based heat pump rollout project wins £450,000
Image courtesy SSEN
Scottish & Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) has announced that a project to advance heat pump rollout in the UK by their Future Networks Team has been awarded £450,000 (approximately $550,779) by the UK’s energy regulator.
The project, called ‘EqualLCT’, will use network data to show areas where a rollout of heat pumps could be coordinated with energy efficiency measures like better insulation to reduce demand for electricity at peak times.
As well as their ability to run on clean, renewable electricity, another major advantage of heat pumps is their ability to be scheduled to use power when demand is lower. EqualLCT leans into this by combining the technology’s inherent strengths with the well-established use of energy efficiency measures as a means of conserving heat in homes.
The technology behind SSEN’s Local Energy Net Zero Accelerator (LENZA) tool, underpins EqualLCT. LENZA helps planners in local authorities across SSEN’s two licence areas with decision-making about where best to locate low-carbon technologies in their communities.
The company’s Innovation Team will overlay LENZA’s existing data layers with information on housing stock, anonymised customer data, and details of any relevant schemes which are available in local areas.
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Commenting in a release was Ross Bibby, project manager for EqualLCT at SSEN Distribution: “At SSEN, we’re leading the way in the transition to net zero, but we know an integral part of this journey involves supporting everyone in our communities to make the choices which will benefit our environment. We know there are currently a number of factors preventing some people from adopting new low carbon technologies, and EqualLCT was born out of a desire to remove these barriers.
“We’re just setting out on our journey to develop this idea, but we expect that if realised, it could cut customers’ bills and defer millions of pounds of network reinforcement.
“The decision by Ofgem’s Strategic Innovation Fund to back this new phase of this project means we and our partners from the energy experts Baringa and SMS will be able to establish a proof of concept for this idea. We’d then hope to demonstrate and operate the technology we’re developing by the end of 2025.”
This project is funded through the Strategic Innovation Fund, which is an Ofgem programme managed in partnership with Innovate UK.
