Energinet.dk is looking for 300 house owners who would like to take part in a large demonstration project whereby the house owners replace their old oil-fired boilers with an environmentally friendly heat pump, and in so doing receive a scrapping subsidy.

The groundbreaking project is the only one of its kind in the world, the idea being to control 300 intelligent heat pumps as if they were one big energy storage facility capable of storing electricity as heat. The house owners will thus be involved in developing the intelligent power system of the future, using wind power to replace fossil fuels for heating purposes. By introducing the heat pumps, the house owners will make an active contribution to the integration of more renewable energy in Denmark.

Electricity cannot be stored. Electricity must be used as it is generated as the technology for storing electricity is not currently available. The generation of increasing amounts of wind power is therefore a challenge to the power system because the energy is, so to speak, blowing in the wind. By connecting 300 heat pumps, you can create a large energy store where electricity can be stored as heat. When winds are strong, the generation of green electricity exceeds consumption, and the electricity can be stored by the heat pumps in the form of heat. In calm weather when all the electricity generated is needed, the heat pumps stop producing heat, and the houses are heated by the stored heat.

House owners notice no difference
Heat pumps are like refrigerators in reverse, producing heat instead of cold. This is done, for example, by using the temperature difference in the ground to generate heat. The best heat pumps can generate 3-4 kWh of heat from 1 kWh of electricity.

The 300 intelligent heat pumps in the project can also be compared to a power station in reverse. A power station can increase or reduce power generation depending on how much the wind blows. By controlling the 300 heat pumps intelligently, they can serve as a large amount of electricity consumption which can be scaled up or down.

The plan is to connect even more heat pumps. For example, 32,000 heat pumps have an output of approx. 200 MW, corresponding to a small power station or a wind farm. This equates to a large amount of flexible electricity consumption which can be increased or decreased depending on the wind.

There are currently approx. 80,000 heat pumps in Denmark. Energinet.dk estimates that the potential for electric heat pumps outside the district heating sector is approx. 50% of the demand for heating in the long term. This corresponds to approx. 500,000 units or more than 15 times the number currently installed.

Considerable climate potential
Heat pumps can transform green wind power into green heat. In this way, fossil fuels in the heat sector can be replaced by wind power from the power sector. Compared with an oil-fired boiler, a heat pump can reduce CO2 emissions by 3-6 tonnes. There are currently approx. 310,000 oil-fired boilers in Denmark.

Considerable export potential
The project has considerable export potential within three areas:

• Heat pumps. 
• Development of the intelligent control unit, which is not yet available in the market. The unit must control communication and the exchange of thousands of data between the power system, heat pumps and the owners' individual requirements with regard to comfort and his financial situation. 
• Know-how on the use of heat pumps to regulate the power system.
• Finances for house owners.
• The Danish Parliament has earmarked DKK 400 million for scrapping and replacing oil-fired boilers with a modern and climate-friendly energy system. There are huge savings to be made for house owners used to heating their houses with oil, as the best heat pumps can generate 3-4 kWh of heat from 1 kWh of electricity. The electricity needed to power the heat pump is cheap when the wind is strong, and there is therefore a need to store electricity as heat. A house owner's annual heating bill can typically be reduced by DKK 7-13,000.
• The price of a heat pump system is approx. DKK 120-130,000, and the payback time is thus ten years or even less if the oil price goes up.

Project from wind power to heat pumps
Wind power to heat pumps is, in reality, three projects which each contributes to shedding light on:

• The extent to which it is, in effect, possible to make consumers tailor their consumption to price signals from the power system.
• The way in which intelligent control between the power system, power traders and heat pumps can be set up.
• The business models and market design which can underpin the development of intelligent electricity consumption.
• The extent to which it will, in reality, be possible for heat pumps to support a power system with a high share of wind power.