More than 60 per cent of the energy used by European industry is used for heat needed for manufacturing.
The EU’s industry could cut a quarter of its CO2 emissions using heat pumps, according to the European Heat Pump Association (EHPA).
If the heat pump technology available today was fully rolled out, the association says it could already supply 37 per cent of the industry’s process heat – thermal energy used in industrial manufacturing processes.
This rollout would see Europe’s industrial sector save up to 146 million tonnes of CO2 annually or 24 per cent of its current emissions. That is a saving bigger than the annual emissions of Czechia.
“Europe needs competitive and sustainable industry – and large-scale heat pumps are key,” explains Paul Kenny, EHPA Director General.
“The technology is already delivering reliable heat, cost savings and affordable energy in manufacturing processes from paper to pasta, and this can and must increase.”
What manufacturing processes can industrial heat pumps be used for?
More than 60 per cent of the energy used by European industry is used for heat, according to the EPHA. The bulk of this demand (66 per cent) for heat comes from process heating or the use of thermal energy in manufacturing.
Almost 80 per cent of this energy traditionally comes from fossil fuels. Currently, just 3 per cent comes from renewable electricity and 11 per cent from biomass. Decarbonising heat energy requirements by 2050 is a priority to meet current EU emissions targets.
Industrial heat pumps can reach temperatures of up to 200C, which means they can be used for processes that require lower temperatures. Of the total heat energy demand from process heat, 37 per cent is from manufacturing that requires temperatures lower than 200C.
That includes things like brewing beer, dairy processing, and paper manufacturing. The Wepa Greenfield paper factory in Château-Thierry in France, for example, uses a heat pump to dry paper pulp. A project partially funded by the French government sees 70C waste heat from the dryer converted into 140C by a heat pump – enough to dry the paper pulp.
Why aren’t companies already using heat pumps?
While around 16 per cent of heating in the EU’s residential and commercial buildings now comes from heat pumps, there’s currently no comprehensive data on how many companies have adopted the technology for industrial processes.
There are still a number of barriers to increasing heat pump uptake – including a lack of awareness about their potential. Upfront costs, too, can prevent companies from switching.
Nearly all European countries offer financial subsidies or support for companies that want to invest in an industrial-sized heat pump. A survey by EPHA found that among 24 EU states – including Norway and Switzerland – help is available in the form of grants, loans, or tax rebates.
The EU’s proposed Industrial Decarbonisation Accelerator Act aims to speed up the decarbonisation of energy-intensive industries. It wants to do this by streamlining procedures for clean tech permits, facilitating investment in cleaner solutions, and supporting the development of green markets.
The EPHA believes more focus should be placed on research, regulation and information sharing to ensure heat pumps are a key part of this plan.
“We urge the European Commission to put industrial heat pumps front and centre of its upcoming plans and policies,” Kenny concludes.
