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The UK government has proposed banning the installation of conventional gas boilers in homes from 2026 and replacing them with “hydrogen ready” heating systems.
Under the consultation published on Tuesday, new boilers installed after that date will continue to use natural gas but at a later date, must be able to switch to hydrogen, which emits only water instead of carbon dioxide when burned.
Replacing gas-fired boilers is a key part of the UK’s target to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, with housing stock accounting for a fifth of greenhouse gas emissions.
However, the proposals are likely to reignite a bitter row over the future of home heating. Some academics, climate groups and electricity companies argue that hydrogen is expensive and question its suitability for domestic properties. They insist that low-carbon alternatives to gas boilers already exist in the form of electric heat pumps.
UK gas grid operators and boiler manufacturers argue that converting to hydrogen would be less disruptive than replacing existing infrastructure with other green technologies that have become a highly polarized debate.
The government has described requiring all new boilers to be “hydrogen ready” from 2026 as a “less-regret” action for consumers, until such models reach price parity with existing natural gas-only appliances “as long as it is required. Standard”. .
Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson particularly supported the pursuit of hydrogen technology as a way to decarbonise some of the most polluting sectors of the economy before he was forced to resign earlier this year.
His government published a hydrogen strategy in 2021, setting out plans to start trials of hydrogen heating at neighborhood level next year and to test it in a large village in 2025 before deciding whether to convert to a gas grid in 2026.
However, residents of some of the locations envisaged for the village trial, including the community of Whitby near the port of Ellesmere in north-west England, have raised concerns about the technology being a human experiment.
Low-carbon hydrogen can be made by electrolysis of water using renewable energy – known as “green” hydrogen – or a chemical process that converts natural gas and captures and stores the carbon dioxide byproduct – known as Known as “blue” hydrogen.
A number of governments, including the European Union, are pursuing green hydrogen with a particular focus on reducing emissions from heavy industry, although there is debate as to whether production of the gas can be scaled up allowing it to completely replace natural gas.
Victoria Billings, marketing director of boiler manufacturer Worcester Bosch, welcomed the government’s consultation on Tuesday, which runs until March 21. And ultimately helps them reduce their household carbon emissions.”
But climate groups argue that hydrogen is being pushed by gas infrastructure companies that would otherwise end up with stranded assets. Alice Harrison, fossil fuel campaign leader at the non-profit Global Witness, said hydrogen heating was “like making dog food with caviar, it’s impossibly expensive and in limited supply”.
She added: “We should focus on cleaner and more affordable solutions like heat pumps instead of trying to keep gas companies masquerading as hydrogen suppliers happy.”
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