The case of 100% electrification of domestic heat in Great Britain
View / Open Files
Authors
Charitopoulos, V.
Fajardy, M.
Chyong, C. K.
Reiner, D.
Publication Date
2022-02-07Series
Cambridge Working Papers in Economics
Publisher
Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge
Type
Working Paper
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
Charitopoulos, V., Fajardy, M., Chyong, C. K., & Reiner, D. (2022). The case of 100% electrification of domestic heat in Great Britain. https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.81913
Abstract
Unlike power sector decarbonisation, there has been little progress made on heat, which is currently the biggest energy consumer in the UK, accounting for 45% of total energy consumption in 2019, and almost 40% of UK GHG emissions. Given the UK’s legally binding commitment to "Net-Zero" by 2050, decarbonising heat is becoming urgent and currently one of the main pathways involves its electrification. Here, we present a spatially-explicit optimisation model that investigates the implications of electrifying heat on the operation of the power sector. Using hourly historical gas demand data, we conclude that the domestic peak heat demand is almost 50% lower than widely-cited values. A 100% electrification pathway can be achieved with only a 1.3-fold increase in generation capacity compared to a power-only decarbonisation scenario, but only, by leveraging the role of thermal energy storage technologies without which a further 40% increase would be needed.
Keywords
heat electrification, energy systems optimisation, carbon capture and storage, heat pumps, unit commitment, investment planning
Identifiers
CWPE2210
This record's DOI: https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.81913
This record's URL: https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/334495
Statistics
Total file downloads (since January 2020). For more information on metrics see the
IRUS guide.
Recommended or similar items
The current recommendation prototype on the Apollo Repository will be turned off on 03 February 2023. Although the pilot has been fruitful for both parties, the service provider IKVA is focusing on horizon scanning products and so the recommender service can no longer be supported. We recognise the importance of recommender services in supporting research discovery and are evaluating offerings from other service providers. If you would like to offer feedback on this decision please contact us on: support@repository.cam.ac.uk