HPT - Heat Pump Testing
Project details
- Horizon Europe Programme
- Grant Agreement N° 101295795
- Project Duration = 24 month (1 April 2026 - 31 March 2028)
- Total EU Contribution = 1.999.969,96 €
Project description
As part of its transition to climate neutrality, the European Union (EU) adopted the European Climate Law and committed to reducing its net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030. Space heating in buildings accounts for 30% of energy-related CO₂ emissions in the EU, making its decarbonisation essential to achieving the targeted 55% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. Transitioning the building sector to low-carbon solutions requires phasing out fossil fuels used for heating. Highly efficient electric heat pumps are expected to play a pivotal role in this transformation, supporting the shift toward cleaner, climate-friendly buildings.
The Ecodesign Directive is a key instrument in addressing building decarbonisation. By establishing minimum performance requirements for energy-related products, including heat pumps, the directive—and its recent extension under the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation—drives efficiency and sustainability. Hydronic heat pumps with a capacity below 400 kW fall under the scope of Ecodesign Regulation 813/2013. To fully realize the energy savings potential enabled by the minimum performance requirements set out in this regulation, it is crucial that heat pump compliance is verified through a robust and transparent testing method. The current approach, outlined in the EN14511 standard, permits third-party intervention, particularly for adjusting the compressor frequency. This creates a risk that the tested set points may not be replicable under real-life installation conditions. A more robust and representative testing method is essential to build consumer confidence and strengthen market surveillance efforts.
Ecodesign regulation 813/2013 and labelling regulation 811/2013 are currently under revision. The revised regulations are expected to be published in the course of 2026. The commission service working on the revision of regulations 813/2013 and 811/2013 informed experts of CEN TC113/WG8 that concerning the space heating and space cooling performance requirement the drafts will include requirements related to heat pumps’ testing. The commission service informed that a new test method, commonly referred to as the compensation method, will be introduced in the draft as the methodology to be used to test variable capacity heat pumps. In addition, a compliance criterion will be added as follow: variable capacity heat pumps are deemed to be compliant if they can operate continuously at the capacities declared in the scope of the regulations. Bearing in mind the crucial role that heat pumps are to play in decarbonising the buildings and mitigate the climate change, it is key that the compensation method is fully described and that its robustness is proven when the revised Ecodesign regulation will enter into force. If the compensation method were to become the only test method allowed to check heat pumps compliance without being fully ready, there is a risk of confusion, non-compliance for manufacturers and a risk of reputation damage for heat pump technology when test data and as-installed performance differ significantly. All in all, there is a significant risk that could jeopardise the roll out of heat pumps and thus the decarbonisation of the building sector.
This project aims at developing the required test procedure needed to measure heat pumps’ performance according to the compensation method. Measurement of both space heating and space cooling performances are included in the test procedure. This project also provides the necessary background ensuring that the compensation method test procedure is in line with the Commission service proposal, such that it is:
Repeatable, meaning that the method allows to obtain the same performance when the same heat pump is tested several times in the same laboratory under the same conditions.
Reproducible, meaning that the method allows to obtain the same performance when the same heat pumps is tested under the same conditions in different laboratories.
Representative of real-life operation, meaning that the test conditions should be consistent with the operating conditions of heat pumps installed in buildings.
Allowing market authorities to verify performance of heat pumps without third party intervention.
The aforementioned criteria will be verified through individual and round-robin testing (RRT) conducted during the course of the project. The scope to be covered by this project is: hydronic electrically driven heat pumps with capacity control of the type variable speed or staged with a maximum capacity of up to 70 kW. Both space heating and space cooling should be covered.
The project will help to identify situations and products for which the method might not be applicable and that should either be let out of scope of the use of this method, or for which special procedures would need to be developed. In the same spirit insights on likely issues to be solved for larger units – up to 1 MW – are also useful output of this work.
Ultimately, the main project objective is to develop guidelines to draft a testing standard under an EU commission mandate that will become a harmonised standard in the scope of Ecodesign and Labelling regulations for heat pumps including in ENER Lot 1 product under the EU Ecodesign Directive.
The Consortium
- Ghent University (UGent) – BE (coordinator)
- Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH (AIT) – AT
- Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und ‑prüfung (BAM) – DE
- Centro de Ensayos Innovación y Servicios S.L. (CEIS) – ES
- Centre Technique des Industries Aérauliques et Thermiques (CETIAT) – FR
- Daikin Europe N.V. – BE
- Teknologisk Institut (DTI) – DK
- Environmental Coalition on Standards (ECOS) – BE
- Électricité de France (EDF) – FR
- ENGIE – FR
- Eurac Research – IT
- Fraunhofer‑Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V. – DE
- Atlantic Climatisation et Traitement d’Air Industrie (Groupe Atlantic) – FR
- Heating Performance Lab GmbH (HPL) – DE
- Institut für Luft‑ und Kältetechnik gGmbH Dresden (ILK Dresden) – DE
- Institut für Solarforschung GmbH (ISFH) – DE
- Mitsubishi Electric Europe B.V. – NL
- NIBE AB – SE
- Politecnico di Milano (POLIMI) – IT
- HLK Stuttgart GmbH – DE
- Viessmann Holding International GmbH – DE
- RWTH Aachen University – DE
- Panasonic R&D Center Germany GmbH – DE
- Panasonic Heating & Ventilation Air‑Conditioning Czech s.r.o.– CZ (affiliated entity)
- Bosch Thermotechnik GmbH – DE
- OST – Ostschweizer Fachhochschule – CH (associated entity)
- TNO – Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research – NL (associated entity)