The Industrial Heat Pump Opportunity Goes Beyond Energy Savings

Industrial heat pumps (IHPs) have well known energy and decarbonization benefits. Less well known are their co-benefits, including more precise heat control, modularity, reduced operational and insurance costs, and improved workplace health and safety. In addition to net energy cost savings, IHP co-benefits can translate to additional savings as high as 20 to 30 percent of facility-level energy costs.  

IHPs also benefit neighboring communities and the general economy with improved air quality, reduced environmental risks, and opportunities for workforce and economic development. 

All these co-benefits should be quantified to better evaluate the costs and benefits of IHPs. This topic brief summarizes the co-benefits of IHPs, the groups to which the benefits accrue, and pathways by which the industrial sector can overcome barriers to greater quantification of IHP co-benefits.