Heat battery boilers aim to speed cut in fossil fuel use

An alternative to gas boilers being built in Berkshire could enable households to cut energy bills and help the UK meet its carbon reduction targets, according to an MP.

The latest heat battery boilers use AI technology to access electricity when its cheaper, building up and then storing heat, which is released as needed into conventional radiators.

Henley and Thame Liberal Democrat MP Freddie van Mierlo was invited to inspect technology developed and manufactured in Wokingham and installed at a house in Thame, after asking questions in Parliament about rural energy resilience in the face of storms and climate change.

Large parts of his constituency have no access to mains gas and many households rely on oil for heating or bottled Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) - fuels which have become more costly in recent months.

Anna and Gary Hearn, from Thame, believe they are saving money compared to their neighbours, as well as doing their bit for the environment by switching away from fossil fuels.

Gary said: "In my head, I'm thinking eventually electricity will be cheaper than gas, so if we take a leap now we're already there ahead of when prices start to come down."

Their system is controlled by a phone app, which automatically draws on electricity when its cheapest, typically overnight.

Anna said: "The fact it's got all the AI machine learning on the app, so it knows how much we're using, when we're using it, and so it looks for the best tariff to charge and times, it's brilliant."

van Mierlo said: "Politicians have set a target of phasing out gas boilers and we need to find a way to do that.

"At the moment we've got far too many people installing brand new gas boilers because they are not aware of innovative solutions like this.

"This is a UK success story. It was invented in the UK, it's manufactured here, and it's being installed right here in this constituency, and I think that is hugely important for both the energy transition, but also as we look to grow as a country and improve our economy."

Unlike an air source heat pump, the heat battery system does not require a large external fan or extensive new pipework to be installed, and eligible homeowners in England and Wales can now apply for a £2,500 grant towards the cost, under a recent expansion of the government's Boiler Upgrade Scheme.

Wokingham firm tepeo is one of a small number of UK businesses working to develop and install domestic heat battery systems over the past five years.

It employs 24 staff but chief executive Johan Du Plessis says there is huge potential for growth.

He said: "We install about 1.5 million gas boilers in the UK every year. ...those need to become heat pumps and heat batteries.

"So, the market is enormous and that change needs to happen as rapidly as possible.

"At the moment these are more expensive than a typical gas boiler, and all the support from the government has gone towards heat pumps to date.

"I'm thankful to say that is now changing, so I think you're going to hear a lot more about heat battery boilers over the coming year."