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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

I, and a team of others across are updating our global heat pump policy toolkit. We would love to know if you think there are any super cool/novel policy and technology examples that we should include in the new version. Please reach out!

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

Very pleased to have been featured in this detailed article on the UK's heat pump market and why growth for this year is looking sluggish, primarily the cut of the Energy Company Obligation Scheme and no replacement yet. www.telegraph.co.uk/gift/aa87389...

telegraph.co.uk

Why hotter weather could save Britain’s failed heat pump revolution

Devices that can provide hot water, heating and cooling all in one may prove popular, say experts

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 13/07/2026

I had a long chat with Ben Cooke at The Times last week (while I had my feet in the sea) and have to say I think this piece which combines consumer advice and market offering for passive and active cooling options is extremely neat: www.thetimes.com/life-style/p...

thetimes.com

Air con: the best units to buy and how much they cost to run

Britain faces its third heatwave in six weeks — and many homes are ill-equipped to cope. We look at the pros and cons of installing air conditioning

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

Air con is not banned. Here I try and cut through the nonsense and explore the regulatory detail around new builds and planning permission for air con retrofit - both of which could be reformed to further support air con. www.linkedin.com/pulse/air-co...

linkedin.com

Air conditioning is not banned. But policy reform is needed.

Last week on Radio 4's PM programme, Evan Davis rightly said, "There is no ban on air conditioning," and that is totally true. There is no ban on air conditioning in the UK.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

Really looking forward to our joint Clean Heat Forum/Swedish Embassy 'Building Decarbonisation Forum' event next week (25th) at London Climate Action Week. Spaces still left londonclimateactionweek.org/event/buildi...

londonclimateactionweek.org

Events - London Climate Action Week

Discover climate summits, forums, workshops, and more during London Climate Action Week — a city-wide celebration of climate action and awareness.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

I am so looking forward to this joint 'Building Decarbonisation Forum' event at London Climate Action week on the 25th June, a collaborative effort between the Embassy of Sweden in the United Kingdom, the Swedish Energy Agency and the Clean Heat Forum. events.business-sweden.com/events/ce15d...

events.business-sweden.com

Building Decarbonisation Forum | London Climate Action Week 2026

From Insights and Innovation to Impact - Shaping the Future of Heating and Cooling in a New Energy LandscapeJoin the Embassy of Sweden, the Swedish Energy Agency, Business Sweden, Sustainable Heating ...

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 31/05/2026

A few thoughts from me on this populist sillyness about air con (not) being banned in new builds and why it's perfectly reasonable and sensible to focus on fabric measures first to reduce overheating. Air conditioning alone will never keep Britain cool www.lbc.co.uk/article/air-...

lbc.co.uk

Air conditioning alone will never keep Britain cool | LBC

The Tories' promise to overturn a 'ban' on air conditioning in new homes doesn't tell the whole story, writes energy expert Dr Richard Lowes

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

I spoke to Times Radio on Sunday about the heat wave and what energy technology combinations might make sense (heat pumps and solar). Mitigation and adaptation in one.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

Citizens and governments are recognising the economic and security value of heat pumps. Has taken some time but good to see the European market doubling in size in a decade. It's a miracle that they slash emissions too. www.ft.com/content/571e... via @FT

ft.com

Heat pump sales jump as consumers recoil at high fossil fuel prices

High demand for units in Europe suggests green technologies benefiting from energy price surge due to Iran war

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

Really nice to be briefly featured in Forbes on the topic of cooling, via @ninaseega.bsky.social, where I point out the scope for major innovation is possible - and it seems likely! www.forbes.com/sites/ninase...

forbes.com

Who Will Pay To Cool The Planet?

Cooling demand is accelerating worldwide, creating a major energy challenge and a critical opportunity to scale innovative, low‑carbon solutions through better finance.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

Today's AccelerateEU communication from the European Commission explains how the existing EU energy policy mix will be further bolstered to drive electrification in order to reduce fossil fuel exposure. (1/3)

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

UK government to increase heat pump grants to £9000 for those with oil and LPG heating. Generous for sure but fully closes the risk of a cost gap and may even provide a small excess for those with small homes (typically the least well off). (1/2)

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

The UK government has just announced targeted financial support for households with oil heating, probably justified. Kerosene prices have been particularly impacted by the Middle East conflict.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

Analysis published today by the UK Climate Change Committee shows that decarbonising the UK by 2050 would cost less than than keeping the system as is if just one 2022 style price shock happened again. This analysis took place before the current price shock by the way.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

Switching a home heated by gas to a heat pump reduces the fossil gas used by that home by over 75%. No other technology gets close to such a big gas demand reduction.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

The US, Russia and Iran were responsible for 40% of global gas exports in 2024 and Liquefied ‘Natural’ Gas (LNG), has become one of the key price setters in this market. The biggest exporters of LNG are the US, Qatar and Australia. www.linkedin.com/posts/richar...

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

Despite the noise from interest groups, experts know that heat pumps can bring down bills especially when combined with solar, heat pump tarriffs and batteries. That's as well as slashing emissions and imports. www.carbonbrief.org/factcheck-wh...

carbonbrief.org

Factcheck: What it really costs to heat a home in the UK with a heat pump - Carbon Brief

This factcheck explains how heat pumps can cut bills, what the latest data shows about potential savings

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 22/01/2026

The Warm Homes Plan is out. Some thoughts: www.linkedin.com/feed/update/...

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

Developments in the Americas have put oil security in the spotlight but transport electrification is an obvious solution to manage oil security. The bigger strategic issue is gas. Together, US, Iran and Russia are responsible for 40% of global gas exports - reliable partners?

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

I/RAP am advertising for a buildings energy policy expert, with experience of buildings in hot climates. Please share with your networks. Closes the end of the month. www.raponline.org/who-we-are/c...

raponline.org

Careers

Are you ready to put your passion for a cleaner energy future to work? Join the RAP team. RAP is seeking collaborators who are enthusiastic about clean energy. We’re looking for curiosity, humor and i...

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 18/12/2025

Really great to see this work on how good heat pump installs can be. An average seasonal performance factor (sCOP) of 3.9 beats gas on running costs, even in the UK where the price ratio between gas and electricity is so bad.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 01/12/2025

🚨Just released🚨 'Tipping the balance: Cheaper electricity is needed to drive clean heating' Our brand new globally focussed paper looks at the role of energy pricing in delivering clean heat uptake and provides examples of what has been done to reduce electricity prices.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 26/11/2025

The removal of the RO levy from bills to taxpayer funding is a huge win for UK households, energy policy and strategy. ECO reform was needed, but a cut seems foolhardy.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 13/11/2025

The cost of living crisis was caused in large part by gas prices. Heat pump policy supports a solution which which gets the country off gas AND reduces emissions. I seriously hope this is some crossed wires, if not we really are in trouble. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

theguardian.com

Hundreds of thousands to lose heat pump subsidies in Reeves’s budget plan

Exclusive: Supporters say grants largely going to middle-class households, but experts warn move will slow transition from gas boilers

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 13/11/2025

I've always found the UK's decline into major gas import dependency troubling and seen the electrification of demand and efficiency as the core solution to energy security AND decarbonisation (climate change is also hugely worrying to me).

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Reposted by Richard Lowes

Sem Oxenaar @soxenaar.bsky.social · 30/10/2025

The future energy bill is an electricity bill. This is why we must 'Make Electricity Cheaper' for households, businesses and industry. In our 3rd paper at RAP on this topic, Tom Butler & I look at reducing tax & levies added to electricity prices for industry. tinyurl.com/4z4v5ssd

raponline.org

Making electricity cheaper: Modernising taxes and levies to incentivise electrification of industrial heat

RAP experts Sem Oxenaar and Tom Butler look at the state of electricity and gas prices for industry and the impact of reducing taxes and levies.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 19/10/2025

Ember demonstrating, in numbers, how electrification is central to reducing energy imports in Europe. Heat pumps in the Netherlands are already reducing gas demand in homes by around 10%! ember-energy.org/latest-insig...

ember-energy.org

Shockproof: how electrification can strengthen EU energy security | Ember

Electrification, using homegrown clean power, is the main tool to reduce the EU’s exceptionally high and risky dependence on imported fossil fuels.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 14/10/2025

Such a depressing situation when solid wall insulation can have such an incredible positive impact when installed properly. Designing the policy to deliver it as cheaply as possible without appropriate safeguards was never going to end well: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

bbc.co.uk

Tens of thousands of homes insulated under government schemes need repairs

Insulation programmes costing billions of pounds have led to widespread problems with damp and mould.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 14/10/2025

bbc.co.uk

Tens of thousands of homes insulated under government schemes need repairs

Insulation programmes costing billions of pounds have led to widespread problems with damp and mould.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 24/09/2025

The brilliant Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP) is looking for two UK based people to join our team as HR assistant and people operations coordinator. Please share. www.raponline.org/who-we-are/c...

raponline.org

Careers

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 18/09/2025

I'm delighted to share two new translations of version 2 of our global heat pump policy toolkit, one in French and one in Polish (these sit alongside the English and Korean versions). This is a key international resource for growing clean heating. www.raponline.org/toolkit/heat...

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 31/08/2025

North Sea liabilities may already be larger than future sales revenues implying this may have significant costs. But more fundamentally, the quicker you deplete an already declining basin, the more rapidly you become exposed to more imports. Proper energy strategy needed.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 21/08/2025

Denmark is proposing removing nearly all tax from electricity bills from next year and taking it down to the EU minimum required level. Will knock off around 5p/kWh. www.dr.dk/nyheder/indl...

dr.dk

Fra næste år vil regeringen næsten helt fjerne elafgiften

I første omgang får forbrugerne billigere strøm i to år, men regeringen afviser ikke at gøre nedsættelsen permanent.

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 19/08/2025

Help needed: I'm looking for the best case studies of governments around the world actively reducing the (relative) price of electricity for households (ideally to actively support electrification). So far I have Germany, The Netherlands, Massachusetts, Sweden, Denmark. Thx

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 14/08/2025

It's getting pretty boring/weird seeing campaign groups obsess over air con. It's not blocked - in fact planning permission now allows it for most existing homes. And it won't reduce carbon. Not sure this is London bubble thinking or a funded campaign. www.politico.eu/article/brit...

politico.eu

Boiling Britain: How air conditioning could become a political priority in the UK

Politicians blowing hot air won’t solve Britain’s record-breaking hot summers.

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Reposted by Richard Lowes

Fionna O’Leary @fascinatorfun.bsky.social · 11/07/2025

Great letter from Dr Richard Lowes, Exeter University + RegulatoryAssistance Project on the continuing insane electricity pricing conditions given the need to incentivise clean energy uptake. Still no published plan (promised by Boris Johnson in 2022) www.ft.com/content/4931...

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Richard Lowes @richardlowes.bsky.social · 17/07/2025

Reminder that electricity is stacked with levies and a carbon tax and gas gets a free pass, fundamentally imbalancing the market. While a heat pump specific payment might deliver a few heat pumps, it won't solve fundamentals and is at risk of cancellation. Wider reform needed.

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