According to the Federal Association of the German Heating Industry, last year was a record year for the heating sector. More than 1.3 million heaters were installed in Germany and the sales market grew by 34 percent. “Welt” was the first to report the figures, which are available to FOCUS online. While there was a boom in heating in 2023, radiators, underfloor heating or ventilation systems did not see a rebound. The main reason for this is the sharp decline in new construction.

There is considerable uncertainty among consumers when it comes to heating systems. This has a particular impact on the heat pump market. In 2023, only 356,000 heat pumps were installed, an increase of 51 percent. In comparison, there were 790,500 gas heaters the previous year, an increase of 32 percent. The number of oil heating systems has even doubled to 112,500.

Consumers therefore increasingly turned to gas and oil heating, apparently also to anticipate the plans of the federal government, which originally planned to ban classic heating from 2024. “People quickly invested in gas heating to evade the demands of the GEG,” says Ralf Kiryk, department head of the Federal Association of the German Heating Industry.

New heating figures prove it: homes depend on security

With the new Building Energy Act (GEG), the oil and gas ban will not come into force until 2045. By then, municipalities should have time to submit their heating plans. At the same time, households should be given more certainty in planning so that they can then decide on heat pumps or environmentally friendly gas heating systems.

But current figures also show that households are looking towards security. Anyone installing a new gas or oil heating system now has, under certain conditions, until 2045 to replace their heating system. At the same time, the energy transition is based on the district heating infrastructure of the municipalities. “Now is the right time to think about heating modernization and address the transition to heating within your own four walls,” underlines BDH CEO Markus Staudt.

From the point of view of the BDH and the Central Association for Sanitation, Heating and Air Conditioning (ZVSHK), politicians must now report above all on thermal technological solutions and new financing. “The heat transition is a team effort. Industry and the specialized sector have done their homework and demonstrated their performance impressively over the past year. Now politics also has to comply. Now the sections must be converted into heating systems,” Staudt demands.

Anyone installing a heating system must submit a risk declaration.

Despite all the imponderables, Martin Sabel, CEO of the Federal Heat Pump Association, sees in the GEG a big step towards renewable energy and greater climate protection in the construction sector.

From January 1, anyone who wants to install gas or oil heating will have to sign that they have been informed about the risks of a drastic increase in fossil fuel prices and the obligation to use increasing proportions of environmentally friendly fuels. environment. The road to the GEG was a “communicative catastrophe.”

To halve CO2 emissions by 2030, some states are already taking concrete measures. In Hamburg and Baden-Württemberg, homeowners are required to cover at least 15 percent of their annual heating needs with renewable energy. From July 1, 2022, similar rules will also apply in Schleswig-Holstein. These measures are part of a comprehensive strategy to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and accelerate the transition to greener and more sustainable residential energy supplies.

Is there a rise in heat pumps?

It's not clear.

There is already a basic obligation to replace a boiler with a new one after 30 years. Heat pumps are likely to play a minor role. There are exceptions, among others, for condensing boilers. That is why households continue to depend on fossil fuels.

From 2045, buildings can only be heated in a climate-neutral way using renewable energy. According to a November study by the energy industry association BDEW, in 2023 almost half of the 41.9 million apartments will be heated with natural gas. Diesel heating comes in second place with almost a quarter.

The ministry points out: In most cases it now makes sense to use heating with renewable energy. This contributes to climate protection and is also economically attractive because there is financial support even if the heating continues to work.