Coal heated houses offered renewable energy solution

The 250,000 UK households that continue to rely on burning coal for heating are to be offered a free ground source heat pump installation.

Energy company E.ON said it will be offering the HeatPlant pumps, worth up to £11,500, to households in ‘vulnerable communities’.

E.ON said the pumps, which work by extracting natural heat from 80m underground, are a ’21st century solution to a 19th century problem’.

Mike Newell, E.ON’s low carbon manager, said: “We’re delighted to be launching this initiative.

“Not only will it enable us to offer another valuable option to customers who are currently coal heated, we hope it will bring local communities together while benefiting the surrounding environment.”

Households using electric, oil, or LPG heating will be offered the HeatPlant pumps at discounted rates.

HeatPlant pumps are cleaner, greener and cheaper than coal, reducing carbon emissions by 74% and heating bills by up to 67%.

They’re also more convenient than coal, providing controllable heating and hot water instead of having to make a firm to keep warm.

Richard Scott, E.ON’s head of marketing for sustainable energy solutions, said: “We’re committed to changing the way people view and use energy and are working hard to continue to reduce the carbon footprint of homes and buildings across the UK.

“This is an example of how, through technological advancement, the CO2 emissions from home heating could be reduced - delivering clear benefits for our environment and cost savings for our customers.”

One resident who has already had an E.ON HeatPlant pump installed said: “I’ve lived alone in my house for 11 years and have seen the cost of solid fuel rise and rise.

“I get through 6 bags of coal a month at about £18 a bag.

“E.ON has replaced everything from my new heating system to new radiators and the savings I’ll make will go a long way.

“I can have the house warm whenever I want, and there’s constant hot water without the cost.

“This new system gives me control over my heating, and it’s clean so I don’t have to deal with the mess of a coal fire.”

The HeatPlant offer is open to groups of six or more households where at least one resident in each property is receiving a means-tested benefit.

To be eligible, households must be heated by coal and have no mains gas supply.