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Germany offers heat pump rentals to beat high upfront costs 

LG Electronics and Germany’s largest heating installer Thermondo are offering a heat pump rental option for consumers looking to replace their oil or gas boilers, but who have been scared off by high upfront costs. 
 
Founder and chief executive Philipp Pausder said Thermondo aims to install nearly 10,000 pumps by the end of 2023, charging a monthly fee starting from 159 euros (£135) in addition to the cost of energy used by the customer to drive the pump.  

German economy minister Robert Habeck plans to increase installation of the devices to a rate of more than 500,000 per year from 2024, to a total of six million by 2030. 

Spiralling energy costs

Pumps have also become more appealing in a time of spiralling energy costs, due in part to the Ukraine conflict, and could be particularly appealing if teamed with rooftop solar panels and with storage batteries as homes go turn to green energy. 

Pausder said purchasing heat pumps could be prohibitively high while the contracting model created an alternative that would help modernise existing homes. 

Thermondo, which has partnered with LG Electronics as a supplier, calculates that six million households are suitable to be changed to heat pumps already.