The UK currently relies on natural gas for domestic heating
UK low-carbon heating bubbles under
The UK faces challenges on multiple fronts in its effort to decarbonise domestic heating
The UK aims to phase out the installation of new and replacement domestic gas boilers by 2035 as part of its 2050 net-zero strategy. But the low-carbon alternatives, such as electric heat pumps, have their own cost and feasibility challenges that could limit the UK’s decarbonisation of heating this decade. The government’s Heating and Buildings Strategy sets an ambition to install 600,000 heat pumps a year by 2028, up from the current annual rate of about 35,000. To date, 265,000 heat pumps have been installed—accounting for less than 1pc of the country’s total heat capacity. The UK has lagged behind mainland Europe in heat pump installations in part due to its historic dependence on North S
Also in this section
2 December 2025
Oil major cites deteriorating demand and a planning debacle as it abandons one of UK’s largest blue hydrogen projects
1 December 2025
Project at Emden in northwest Germany due online in 2027, but wider ramp-up of clean hydrogen sector in Germany will require overhaul of government policy, company warns
25 November 2025
The northwest African country’s vision of integrating green power, molecules and steel is alive and kicking, and serves as a reminder of hydrogen’s transformative potential
19 November 2025
The creation of ‘lead markets’ to generate hydrogen demand in the EU has potential, but implementation would pose complex challenges for producers and industrial offtakers
