The aim of the research was to explore the potential of heat pumps - a technology that is seen by many as playing a key role in decarbonising buildings - in existing apartment buildings, and the technical, legal, administrative, etc. responses needed to make this technology an alternative to gas heating in more densely populated urban areas.
It can be concluded that the technical and technological potential is there, and that heat pumps can be used in almost all buildings, but that there are barriers that can be difficult or very costly to overcome, depending on the building's characteristics. Pilot investments show that, with proper design and sizing, modern heat pumps can operate with a reasonable SCOP in district heating or central heating apartment buildings with minimal modifications. Based on the "energy efficiency first" principle and the concept of deep retrofits, complex retrofits are of course the most desirable, but for condominiums, these can involve hundreds of people and can be very time and cost intensive. The situation is particularly difficult in condominiums with individual heating systems for each apartment, where each apartment is separately owned, where building regulations are strict and where electricity networks are overloaded. It is a question of political commitment whether governments will help homeowners to choose decarbonised heating options through the phasing out of fossil fuel installations, targeted subsidy programmes, advice bureaux and awareness campaigns.

The report is available in Hungarian language here and will be available in English soon.