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The European Heat Pump Association is calling for heat pumps to receive a dedicated European Partnership and priority status in the EU’s planned €175bn Horizon Europe research programme for 2028–2034. Negotiations are scheduled for 2026 and 2027, and the programme is targeted to begin in January 2028; inclusion has not been confirmed.
The European Heat Pump Association (EHPA) is urging the EU to give heat pumps a dedicated European Partnership and priority status in Horizon Europe 2028–2034, the planned research and innovation programme worth €175 billion. The request is a proposal, not a confirmed funding decision: EU member states and the European Parliament are due to negotiate the programme during 2026 and 2027.
Horizon Europe, also known as FP10, is intended to succeed the EU’s current 2021–2027 research and innovation funding cycle. The programme’s proposed total is €175 billion, and its launch is targeted for January 2028. EHPA wants heat pumps explicitly recognised as a thematic priority across the technology and its applications.
The association proposes using a European Partnership to organise and co-fund research over several years. Under this instrument, the EU and participating industry, research organisations and national funders agree on a shared research agenda and contribute funding. EHPA argues that a dedicated partnership could provide the sector with longer-term, more predictable support.
EHPA says research priorities should cover cost competitiveness, environmental performance, integration with energy systems and market uptake. Areas it identifies include improving efficiency, developing new refrigerants, reducing costs, integrating heat pumps with electricity grids and advancing high-temperature applications in industry. These are proposals from the association; the source report does not say that the EU has adopted them or committed funding.
A Long-Term Research Route for Heat Pumps
A place in the programme could shape what heat-pump research receives support across the EU after the current funding cycle ends. A dedicated partnership, if agreed, would give EU institutions and participating organisations a formal structure for setting shared research goals and co-funding work over several years. EHPA’s case is that predictable support would help researchers and companies plan projects that may take time to develop, including new refrigerants and industrial systems.
The proposal also links research policy with wider industrial and energy-system goals. Heat pumps are used in buildings and can also serve some industrial heating applications; EHPA wants the programme to cover both, as well as the technology’s interaction with energy networks. The association says naming heat pumps as a priority would send a signal that the EU considers them strategically important. That is EHPA’s stated argument, not an announced EU assessment or a guarantee of later deployment.
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The 2028–2034 Funding Cycle
The proposed Horizon Europe programme would be the EU’s 10th research and innovation framework, following the 2021–2027 cycle. Its structure and priorities are still subject to the legislative process. The available report says negotiations between member states and the European Parliament are expected to run through 2026 and 2027, before a planned January 2028 start.
EHPA is not asking only for a research partnership. It also calls for heat pumps to feature in a broader set of EU initiatives: a Strategic Energy Technology (SET) plan implementation working group on heat pumps; a strong focus within the working group on buildings and industry; continuation of a heat pump accelerator platform; and a net-zero industry academy for the sector. The association further wants links to the European Competitiveness Fund and deployment-focused tools such as the Industrial Decarbonisation Bank. The report presents these as EHPA recommendations, not existing commitments to fund or establish each measure.
“The association is calling for heat pumps to get a dedicated European Partnership and be named as a priority area in the funding programme.”
— European Heat Pump Association, as reported by Cooling Post
No EU Funding Decision Yet
The report does not confirm that the European Commission, member states or Parliament have agreed to EHPA’s proposal. The final programme’s research priorities, the use of a dedicated European Partnership, its budget allocation and the terms of any co-funding remain unsettled in the available information. The proposed €175 billion is the stated overall value of Horizon Europe, not a specified sum for heat pumps.
It is also unclear whether the related measures EHPA lists—including the proposed working groups, accelerator platform and academy—will be maintained, created or given additional funding. The report provides no timetable for a decision on the association’s specific request, beyond the wider legislative negotiations expected in 2026 and 2027.
Programme Negotiations in 2026–2027
EU member states and the European Parliament are expected to negotiate the next research and innovation programme through 2026 and 2027. Those discussions will determine the final framework and priorities before the planned January 2028 launch. EHPA is seeking recognition from the European Commission and a place for heat pumps in the programme’s thematic priorities; the source report does not identify a confirmed response or decision date.
Readers should distinguish the association’s campaign from the eventual programme text. The relevant next development will be whether EU institutions include a heat-pump priority or dedicated partnership in negotiated plans, and whether any such provision comes with defined funding, research areas and links to deployment instruments.
Key Questions
What is EHPA asking the EU to do?
EHPA wants heat pumps named as a priority in Horizon Europe 2028–2034 and wants a dedicated European Partnership to coordinate and co-fund research on the technology and its applications.
Has the EU approved dedicated heat-pump funding?
No approval is reported. The €175 billion figure refers to the proposed total value of Horizon Europe, not an allocation for heat pumps. EHPA’s request remains a proposal as negotiations approach.
What research areas does EHPA want included?
The association identifies efficiency, new refrigerants, lower costs, grid integration and high-temperature industrial uses. It also proposes priorities covering competitiveness, environmental contribution, energy-system integration and market uptake.
When could the next EU research programme begin?
Horizon Europe 2028–2034 is targeted to launch in January 2028. Legislative negotiations between EU member states and the European Parliament are scheduled to run through 2026 and 2027.
What remains undecided about the proposal?
It is not yet clear whether EU institutions will adopt a heat-pump priority or partnership, how much funding such work might receive, or whether EHPA’s proposed supporting initiatives will be established or continued.
Source: coolingpost.com
