The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) says that 35% of the energy consumed in the U.S. is a result of heating and cooling buildings.
Because this represents such a significant portion of overall energy use, it also offers a big opportunity for improvements in efficiency — and it seems the federal government plans to test the effectiveness of an alternative to traditional heating and cooling equipment in the hopes of transitioning to a more efficient process.
To do so, the government is making big investments in increasing production of heat pumps by leveraging a law first enacted during the Cold War.
According to the DOE, heat pumps offer “an energy-efficient alternative to furnaces and air conditioners for all climates.” They work by transferring heat or cold from air, ground, or water rather than creating it, which results in an efficiency boost that the DOE says can fall between 65% and 80%, depending on the source. The agency added that greenhouse gas emissions can be cut by half.
The investment of $169 million will be directed to a handful of heat pump manufacturers in order to help them scale the production of these units. The funding — allocated under a 2022 climate bill — was directed by an executive order issued by President Biden, which cited climate change as an imminent threat that warrants the use of the emergency Defense Production Act (DPA).
In a recent report, Reuters said that manufacturers receiving the funds include Honeywell of Louisiana, Armstrong International of Michigan, and South Carolina’s Ice Air.
