Heat pump cost calculator for commercial buildings: running cost and payback
Enter your gas spend, unit prices and the SCOP of the proposed system to compare running costs and see the break-even SCOP for commercial heat pump installation. Indicative only, not a quote.
Indicative result
- Heat pump running cost a year
- £30,357
- Running-cost saving a year
- -£357
- Break-even SCOP
- 3.04
- First-year AIA tax effect (25%)
- £37,500
- Payback after AIA
- No running-cost payback
How it works: gas kWh = gas spend / gas price; heat delivered = gas kWh x boiler efficiency; heat pump electricity = heat delivered / SCOP; running cost = electricity x electricity price. Break-even SCOP = electricity price x boiler efficiency / gas price. The pre-filled values are examples, not market prices or a forecast: replace them with figures from your own bills and proposal. Payback ignores maintenance, grants, carbon costs and price changes. This tool does not store any data you enter. See capital allowances for the tax rules.
Calculator FAQs
How accurate is this calculator?
It is arithmetic on the numbers you enter, so it is only as good as those numbers. The defaults are illustrative examples, not market prices: replace them with your own gas and electricity unit prices from your bills, your boiler efficiency and the SCOP quoted for the proposed system. A survey with twelve months of consumption data and a heat-loss calculation gives the design figures.
What is SCOP and why does it decide the result?
SCOP is the seasonal coefficient of performance: the units of heat a heat pump delivers over a year for each unit of electricity it uses. A SCOP of 3 means 3 kWh of heat for 1 kWh of electricity. The higher it is, the lower the running cost, and it rises when the design flow temperature is lower, which is why the emitter survey matters.
What is the break-even SCOP?
It is the SCOP at which the heat pump costs the same to run as your current boiler, given your two unit prices and your boiler efficiency (electricity price x boiler efficiency / gas price). If the proposed system is designed above that figure, running costs fall; below it, they rise.
Does the estimate include tax relief?
It shows an indicative first-year corporation-tax effect of the Annual Investment Allowance at the 25% main rate on the install cost you enter. Your actual eligibility depends on your tax position and profits; the capital allowances page explains the rules and cites gov.uk.
Is this a quote?
No. It is an indicative calculation to help scope the opportunity. A real proposal needs a heat-loss survey, your consumption data and a supply capacity check from the network operator.