Delta-ee recently completed a consultancy piece for the Energy Systems Catapult looking at the integrated home energy landscape as it relates to heat pumps. In our work, we covered many aspects related to the integrated home heating market as well as the heat pump market supply chain. Here I discuss where we see this space is going.

Currently, many connected home devices and heating systems are siloed in their operation and are not fully interoperable. It often requires effort to integrate different parts of the system by homeowners or professionals. This is likely to change in the future.

Delta-ee recently supported Wales & West Utilities’ strategic work looking into the future role of gas in the UK as part of an integrated cross-vector energy system. We helped Wales &West Utilities develop a new generation of their 2050 Energy Pathfinder Model that assesses the impact of different future energy mixes on the balance of electricity and gas supply and demand for any size population in the UK. The main objectives of the rebuild were to critically review the methodology and assumptions, streamline the model methodology, and improve the model’s user interface.

The model simulates hourly supply and demand profiles for gas and electricity across a defined region for a sample year. Together with existing sources and demands, new sources such as tidal barrage, and demands such as EVs are included, alongside fuel switching between the electricity and gas vectors (for example, using hybrid heat pumps). This enables a range of storage, demand response and new technology innovations to be simulated. The model outputs the following results:

What’s this all about?

Energy Systems Catapult (ESC) is working with Delta-ee to develop a database of innovative UK companies, with overseas export potential, that are active in the smart power, district heating and distributed power sectors.

 Delta-ee is excited to be taking part in a ground-breaking innovation project for Wales & West Utilities and Western Power Distribution. The Flexible Residential Energy Demand Optimisation and Management  (FREEDOM) project has overseen the installation of 75 hybrid air source heat pumps, in combination with hybrid control panels in homes in South Wales. 

The project, managed by PassivSystems, is the largest-scale demonstration trial of hybrid heating systems ever undertaken in the UK. The ultimate aim is to influence the course of UK heat policy. In particular the study will: