LONDON: Figures from energy industry regulator Ofgem show that 99% of the heating capacity currently installed under the Government's Renewable Heat Incentive has been from biomass boilers.
The Ground Source Heat Pump Association has threatened to seek an injunction against the Renewable Heat Incentive unless the Government makes a number of key changes to the scheme.
The Renewable Heat Incentive was launched in November 2011 and pays building owners who install renewable heat generating technologies for each kWh of heat they generate.
The Department of Energy and Climate Change is consulting on plans to extend the scheme to domestic properties and bring new technologies into the commercial scheme. Brian Kennelly, chair of the Ground Source Heat Pump Association, said the current structure of the scheme biased the market in favour of biomass boilers to the detriment of heat pumps.
"Before the RHI was in place we had a growing market. The industry is a quarter the size it was in 2008. The Government is killing off an area of green growth."
A spokesperson for the department said it was aware of the industry's concerns and was amassing evidence on the cost and input assumptions attributed to heat pumps.
