2026-06-22 20:04 UTC
@Akshay@eupolicy.social You are correct that heat pumps are quite efficient heaters. To a first approximation the efficiency of a heat pump almost cancels the inefficiency of a nat gas turbine. The result being that if that turbine is supplying the electrons to the heat pump the CO2 being released is the same as if the nat gas was combusted in a boiler/furnace.
In most of the datasets I’ve studied the seasonal renewable supply slumps mean they can’t be counted on to supply heat pump heating. In Ontario nuclear supplies most of my winter GSHP electrons, but that level of nuclear penetration is rare on a global scale.
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@Akshay@eupolicy.social 2026-06-22 20:53
@icanbob@techhub.social Wait, how does that work? In the Netherlands, a CCGT might have 50-60% efficiency and more if waste heat is used. Heatpumps are ~3-5X more efficient than boilers. So isn't this much better than canceling out the CCGT inefficiency? And while renewables drop from over 50% in June to just over 40% of the EU grid in December, they don't drop to zero, and you can add the 20-25% nuclear to that. So the EU grid is majority low carbon even in winter. https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/european-electricity-review-2026/2025-at-a-glance/