The number of heat pump installations is growing in many European countries. Here are some statistics on heat pump installations in Europe, updated for 2022.
Key Stats
- The greatest proportion of heat pumps in Europe is in Norway (60% of homes), Sweden (43% of homes), Finland (41% of homes), and Estonia (34 percent of households).
- Relative to Germany, only 17 million heat pumps have been installed across Europe, whereas gas boilers number 20 million.
- In Europe, the number of heat pumps in use has grown steadily over time, both aerothermal and ground source heat pumps. The number of operational heat pumps in the EU rose from 25 million in 2013 to 41.9 million by 2020.
1. Over the previous decade, the European heat pump market has expanded at a steady rate, with an annual growth rate of 10% from 2011 to 2020, resulting in the installation of 1 million heat pumps each year by 2021. This indicates a market growth of 39% in 2020 (EHPA and Daikin Europe).
2. Heat pumps have been utilized in some form by various governments around Europe for a long time, preventing millions of tonnes of emissions and laying the groundwork for 40 percent of all residential structures to be heated using electricity by 2030. (European Heat Pump Association, 2021).
The countries winning the European heat pump race are:
3. Norway – 24,675 heat pumps per 100,000 people
Norway is leading the way when it comes to heat pump adoption in Europe and also the world. That’s one in four or twenty-five percent of the population installing heat pumps.
What has helped is the long-standing subsidy of at least £1,100. In fact, it helped so much, that Norway banned the sale of oil heating in 2020. Pretty impressive.
Since the country generates almost all of its electricity using hydroelectricity, much of it comes from the massive Lysefjord facility (which has two run-of-the-river turbines), and since Norway is one of the most renewable energy-rich nations on earth, its 1.33 million heat pumps are truly environmentally friendly.
4. Sweden – 19,510 per 100,000 people
Just behind Norway (actually not that far behind) is Sweden with nearly the same number of installs per 100,000 people.
Heat pumps are now the default option for new builds in Sweden and have been for a while.
In fact, almost all Swedish towns have entire heat pump districts where every new building must use one. This is to meet the government’s ambitious climate goals of being fossil-fuel-free by 2030.
5. Finland – 18,314 per 100,000 people
You can probably start to see a trend here? The vast majority of Scandanavian countries are using heat pumps and for good reasons.
Not only do they have some of the most renewable energy in Europe, but also because it’s just so darn cold up there.
Finland is one of the most northern countries in the world, and as such, winter temperatures can get as low as -50°C.
That’s why almost half of all Finnish households have a heat pump. And with continued investment in renewables, that number is only going to rise.
Finland’s heat pumps have significantly reduced greenhouse gas emissions, thanks to this policy.
This has helped Finland’s heat pumps save 2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide, which is remarkable given the country’s overall emissions total of 48 million tonnes.
Now 70 percent of new houses under 500 square feet choose to install a heat pump, demonstrating that the future for heat pumps in Finland is bright (Valtioneuvosto.fi/en).
6. Estonia – 14,726 per 100,000 people
The great thing about Estonia is that it has witnessed consistent growth of 16,000 or 17,000 heat pumps installed in the past 7 years.
In 2020, for a country of 1.3 million people with just 17,000 heat pumps, the 9.5 percent sales increase represented a 9.5% increase in total stock. It also doesn’t hurt that consumers on average pay 11.3p per kWh versus the UK’s 16.3p price level (Ec.europa.eu).
7. Denmark – 7,549 per 100,000 people
Denmark actively incentivizes their population to remove oil boilers and replace them with heat pumps.
The introduction of a new government support program for large heat pumps in the Danish market has given the technology yet another boost in sales.
The credit mechanism it replaces, which launched in March 2021, provides subsidies worth up to 15% of the pump installation cost, up to five million kroner (£570,000) (Solarthermalworld.org).
Thomas Nowak, the secretary-general of the European Heat Pump Association, stated that the popularity of heat pumps in northern European countries is due to a level playing field.
“The lack of gas sources in Nordic countries and policymakers’ lack of options to keep gas artificially cheap brings heat pumps into a direct comparison with electric heating, biomass and district heating.”
“There is also a higher acceptance level [in Nordic countries] for using electricity as an energy carrier for heating. In Germany, for example, that was not accepted for a long time.” (Energymonitor.ai)
8. France – 4,586 per 100,000 people
France has increased its heat pump installation by 34% in the past two years with a total 3.1 million units. This is an astonishing number and is unmatched by any other European nation.
The increase in the number of heat pump installations is partially due to 2012 eco-friendly building rules, which have resulted in 40% of new structures choosing a heat pump (Heatpumpingtechnologies.org).
9. Switzerland – 4,110 per 100,000 people
Did you know that over 40% of heating systems in Switzerland are powered by heat pumps? In fact, single-family homes have seen a rise of 90% in installations.
2020 was the standout year for installations with a record 36,000 installed.
Switzerland’s regions (known as cantons) have different approaches to renewable energy, where the government has introduced regulations and subsidies to increase the uptake of heat pumps.
10. Heat pumps and energy-efficient goods would be exempt from VAT, and low-cost loans for installation as having been implemented in Germany, possibly through the National Infrastructure Bank, and other tax advantages as in Italy (greenpeace.org.uk).
11. The European heat pump market is expected to reach over $11 billion in 2019 and grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 8% through 2026. The demand for carbon-neutral heating systems has risen in the region as a result of ongoing government efforts to cut CO2 emissions, combined with growing environmental concerns. (gminsights.com).
12. According to the report by ASHP, the worldwide heat pump market is anticipated to grow by more than 8% through 2026. The product’s low running cost, increased longevity, decreased upkeep requirements, and simplicity of installation are just a few of the key advantages that will appeal to customers over the forecast period. The ability to provide space heating in tandem with water heating would significantly boost the demand for air source heat pumps in Europe. In addition, the development of specifically designed pumps for severe climatic situations will contribute to the market’s long-term success. (gminsights.com).
13. Ground-source heat pumps are popular in Germany and Sweden, the two major European markets. Sweden has 650,000 ground-source heat pump installations by 2020, while Germany has 410,000. In fact, globally, Sweden has the highest installation rate per capita. (IEA.org).
14. Relative to Germany, only 17 million heat pumps have been installed across Europe, whereas gas boilers number 20 million.“We need a gas reduction strategy, and one that really has an effect,” said German Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck on 20 March. “That means we should stop installing new gas heating systems in houses,” he added (EHPA.org).
15. From 2013 to 2019, the number of heat pumps in operation in Belgium has increased by around 410,100 units. Aerothermal heat pumps were considerably more prevalent than ground source heat pumps during that whole period. Only a few thousand of the 439,100 heat pumps currently in use are ground source heat pumps (Statista.com).
16. In France, the number of heat pumps in operation has been growing steadily over time. The number of heat pumps increased from 4 million to 8.7 million during the period 2013 through 2020. During that time, aerodynamic heat pumps have been far more prevalent than ground source heat pumps. In operation, the EU’s overall number of heat pumps rose over time (Theccc.org.uk).
17. The amount of heat pumps in operation in Germany has risen over time, both aerothermal and ground source heat pumps. While there were about 562,000 heat pumps in Germany in 2013, that figure is expected to rise to 1.3 million by 2020. Aerothermal heat pumps were used in far greater numbers during the whole period than ground source heat pumps (Statista.com).
18. Hungary’s heat pump market continued to grow in 2020, with the number of units operating increasing by almost 6,200 over the previous year. In 2020, there were 18,620 operating aerothermal heat pumps in Hungary, as well as 3,090 ground source heat pumps. The number of heat pumps in the EU also increased steadily throughout this time span (Statista.com).
19. Between 2013 and 2019, the number of heat pumps in use in the Netherlands increased by almost 778,400 devices, demonstrating a consistent growth trend. Ground-source heat pumps were far more popular during the entire period than aerothermal heat pumps (Statista.com).
20. The number of heat pumps in use in Italy has increased over the past five years, growing by 1.1 million from 2013 to 2020; overall, heat pumps have risen by roughly 2.7 million units during this period. In the final year of the forecast, Italy had 18 million heat pumps in operation, with 17.9 million being aerothermal (Statista.com).
21. During the same period, the number of heat pumps in operation in Finland increased at a steady rate. In the years 2013 through 2019, total heat pumps rose by roughly 418 thousand units. Aerothermal heat pumps were far more prevalent than ground source heat pumps in all years (Statista.com).
22. In 2019, Finland had about 965 thousand heat pumps in operation, with 128 thousand ground source heat pumps. In the same year, 28 European Union member countries had around 40 million heat pumps in use (Statista.com).
23. Over the years, the number of heat pumps in operation in Sweden has grown continuously, both ground source and aerothermal heat pumps. In all years except one, aerothermal heating systems have outnumbered ground source heat pumps by a wide margin (Statista.com).
24. In 2019, there were about 1.9 million heat pumps in use in Sweden, of which 1.3 million were aerothermal heat pumps. In the same year, EU member nations had roughly 40 million heat pumps in operation (Statista.com).
25. The number of heat pumps in operation in Spain has been growing progressively over time. Between 2013 and 2019, the number of total heat pumps increased by 3.9 million units. Aerothermal heat pumps were significantly more prevalent than ground source heat pumps in all years (Statista.com).
26. In 2019, Spain had around 4.2 million heat pumps in use, of which 11,000 were ground source heat pumps. The 28 European Union member nations had about 40 million heat pumps in operation in the same year (Statista.com).
27. The number of heat pumps in use in Lithuania has gradually increased over the years, climbing by roughly 65,200 units from 2013 to 2020. Lithuania had more ground source heat pumps than aerothermal ones until 2017, but since 2019 the latter have outnumbered the former. In 2020, Lithuania had 68,200 heat pumps operating; about 63,500 were aerothermal (Statista.com).
28. During the five-year period, the proportion of heat pumps that are in operation in Luxembourg has been increasing. Between 2013 and 2019, approximately 1.8 thousand additional heat pumps were installed. Aerothermal heat pumps were by far the most popular type throughout all years (Statista.com).
29. In 2019, there were 2.7 thousand heat pumps in use in Luxembourg, of which 831 were ground source heat pumps. The 28 European Union member countries had around 40 million heat pumps in operation at the end of the year (Statista.com).
30. Between 2013 and 2019, the number of heat pumps in operation in Slovakia increased at a rapid rate. Total heat pumps increased by around 91 thousand units during that time. Aerothermal heat pumps were by far the most prevalent type throughout all years (Statista.com).
31. In 2018, Slovakia enjoyed an exceptional development, with statistics increasing by more than 100%. In 2019, Slovakia has 98.6 thousand heat pumps in operation, with about four thousand ground source heat pumps. Between 28 EU member countries in the same year, around 40 million heat pumps were operational.
32. In 2020, heat pump sales in Europe increased by +7.4%. A new sales record was set with 1.62 million units sold throughout Europe, despite a 7% increase over the previous year (Statista.com).
33. The current European heat pump stock is estimated to be 14.86 million units, assuming a 20-year life expectancy. With a total of more than 244 million residential structures in Europe, the heat pump market share in the building stock is around 6% (ehpa.org).
34. Today’s heat pump can cover a wider temperature range than previous models. They continue to work at -25 degrees Celsius, and they are increasingly successful in delivering hot water at 65 degrees Celsius in an efficient manner (Researchandmarkets.com).
35. In addition, heat pumps may be used in nearly all types of buildings because they are more efficient than conventional HVAC systems. Even during remodeling, heat pumps can be utilized since they are more energy-efficient (ehpa.org).
36. In Europe, the number of heat pumps in use has grown steadily over time, both aerothermal and ground source heat pumps. The number of operational heat pumps in the EU rose from 25 million in 2013 to 41.9 million by 2020. Aerothermal heat pumps have always been far more popular than ground source heat pumps throughout the whole period. (Statista.com).
37. The number of heat pump purchases in Europe has been rising over the last several years, increasing from one million units sold in 2016 to 1.62 million units by 2020. In 2020, there were roughly 18 million running heat pumps in Italy. Hungary, on the other hand, boasted only 21,712 heat pump installations in operation that year (Statista).
38. In many European countries, a large number of homes rely on fossil fuel sources for their heating. In 2020, natural gas and heating oil accounted for around 75% of household heating sources in Germany. As a result, because of this, residential CO2 emissions are the greatest in some countries owing to the fact that they depend on it as their primary source (Iea.org).
39. It’s not uncommon for most European families to spend a significant amount of money on heating. In fact, around 12% of the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2019 came from the residential sector. There is a lot of potential for reducing the environmental impact of European buildings by switching to energy-efficient electric heat pumps. (Statista.com).
40. Sales in Europe are lower, but they are rising quickly as 185 000 heat pump water heaters were sold in 2020, up from around 30 000 in 2010. (Iea.org).
41. Minimum performance requirements may also include energy efficiency definitions. The European Union, for example, included a seasonal coefficient of performance (SCOP) in its 2009 Ecodesign legislation. In primary energy terms, it measures energy efficiency and, since 2017, only air-to-water pumps and ground-source heat pumps that meet a minimum efficiency standard of 115‑125% (comparable to a SCOP of 2.875 to 3.125) have been allowed to be sold. For air-to-air heat pumps, the EU minimum is a SCOP of 3.8. (Iea.org).
42. The current European heat pump stock is estimated to be 14.86 million units, assuming a 20-year life expectancy. With a total of more than 244 million residential structures in Europe, the heat pump market share in the building stock is around 6% (ehpa.org).
43. In 2020, approximately 4.2 million heat pumps were sold in the European Union member countries. Italy had by far the most heat pumps sold, with millions of them being sold each year. Around 990,000 and 400,000 vehicles were sold in France and Spain during the same year (Statista.com).
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