Also new for heat pumps: Switzerland-wide climate bonus for replacing oil and gas heating systems is being expanded
The climate bonus for renewable heating launched in 2020 has already got off to a very successful start with around 600 funding requests. Energie Zukunft Schweiz has therefore decided to expand the successful model from wood heating to heat pumps with immediate effect. Those who replace their oil or gas heating with a climate-friendly heating system benefit from the funding program - in all areas: in residential buildings, in the office and commercial sector and even for industrial processes. This closes funding gaps. The climate premium, which is uniform throughout Switzerland, has no upper limit and thus creates completely new conditions, especially for larger systems.
Switzerland-wide funding with no upper limit
This is exactly where Energie Zukunft Schweiz comes in: The climate bonus is a large-scale, Switzerland-wide funding program with no maximum amount and is expected to run until 2025. The climate bonus for wood heating systems launched in August 2020 has hit the nerve of the times: a total of around 600 funding requests have been received since then.
Fossil heating with a total output of 12 MW is already being replaced with the help of the climate premium. For a heating center for eight apartment buildings with an output of 316 kW, for example, a subsidy of CHF 110,000 was spoken, which covered around 60% of the investment costs. With this system alone, 56,000 liters of heating oil can be saved per year, which corresponds to emissions of around 125 tons of CO₂.
Even more attractive thanks to the expansion to include heat pumps
Following the successful launch for wood heating systems, Energie Zukunft Schweiz is now expanding the program to include heat pumps. The subsidy for water / water and brine / water heat pumps is 1.80 francs per liter of oil or cubic meter of natural gas saved. For an air / water heat pump, the amount is 1 franc. With correctly dimensioned heating, that is around 360 francs for a brine / water heat pump and 200 francs per kilowatt of power for an air / water heat pump.
Energie Zukunft Schweiz provides an online subsidy calculator to estimate the expected subsidy amount. The funding is financed by the KliK Foundation for Climate Protection and CO₂ Compensation. The program is regulated by the Federal Office for the Environment FOEN.
Funding contributions for all areas – also for public buildings, office buildings and industrial companies
The fact that there is no upper limit for funding and not only for the residential sector makes the program for large-scale heating systems – for example for community buildings, process heat in industrial companies, apartment blocks, large commercial or office buildings or entire areas – particularly attractive. A substantial proportion of the investment costs are covered and complex, multivalent systems are also eligible for funding.
Decarbonization is accelerating
Renewable heating systems offer many advantages: They not only protect the climate by significantly reducing CO2 emissions, they also have a positive influence on the image and value of real estate. With the generous subsidies for wood heating systems and heat pumps and the uniform processing throughout Switzerland, the climate bonus accelerates the decarbonisation of heating systems in Switzerland significantly. The investment costs are massively reduced. The dilemma that climate-damaging technologies are preferred for reasons of cost has thus been overcome.