An ongoing debate centres on the role of hydrogen in home heating and its viability as an alternative for consumers.
Citizens Advice has voiced concerns regarding the potential for mixed messages and the risks of deceptive marketing, particularly when consumers must make choices regarding appliance replacements.
In partnership with LCP Delta, Citizens Advice has conducted research to shed light on an area with limited data – the cost implications of upgrading electricity and gas networks in various location types.
Key findings indicate that upgrading both electricity and gas networks in the same location results in more than doubling network costs on average.
Heat pumps consistently demonstrate lower network costs across various location types, with notable savings in rural and industrial areas.
Citizens Advice has urged the government to minimise heating system costs by adopting location-specific solutions, a concept known as “heat zoning.”
As an initial step, the charity recommends ruling out the use of hydrogen in rural areas, where network costs for heat pumps are significantly lower than those for hydrogen boilers.
