The Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) will have closed to new applicants after 2024/25, according to the scheme's final impact assessment published by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 16 February 20221. The document states that the scheme is planned to run over a three-year period to 2024/25, with a budget of £450 million across 2022/23 to 2024/251.
The BUS was designed to follow the closure of the Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive, which the assessment says "will close to new applications on 31 March 2022"1. The Non-Domestic RHI had already closed on 31 March 20211. The scheme is planned to launch in spring 2022 and covers England and Wales, supporting installations up to a capacity of 45kWth in existing domestic and small non-domestic buildings1.
Grant levels under the preferred option are set out by technology:
| Technology | Grant |
|---|---|
| Air source heat pump (ASHP) | £5,000 |
| Ground source heat pump (GSHP) | £6,000 |
| Biomass boiler | £5,000 |
The assessment says the scheme is planned to support up to 90,000 installations in total between April 2022 and March 20251. Vouchers for ASHPs and biomass boilers will be valid for three months, while GSHP vouchers will be valid for six months1. Installations are to be assured through Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) standards1.
On costs and benefits, the assessment gives an estimated whole life capital cost of £450m (nominal, undiscounted) between 2022/23 and 2024/25, to deliver £660m of social benefits and an overall Social Net Present Value of £310m (discounted, 2020 prices), against a social cost of £350m within the central scenario1. It estimates the scheme could deliver up to 1.1MtCO2e of carbon savings over Carbon Budgets 4 and 5, and 2.6MtCO2e over its lifetime, alongside 3.0MtCO2e of non-traded carbon abatement over its lifetime1. The annual renewable heat generated is estimated at 0.3TWh on average between 2022 and 20501.
"After 2024/25, the scheme will have closed to new applicants."
The assessment also records changes made since the consultation stage, including the additionality assumption being revised from 100% to 70%, and the assumed lifetime of biomass boilers being shortened from 20 years to 15 years by BEIS engineers1. It notes that the estimates of social costs and benefits are subject to significant uncertainty, including around deployments, additionality and counterfactuals1.
Why it matters for households
The BUS is an upfront capital grant, so its value to a household depends on installing an eligible system while the scheme is open. The assessment's statement that it will have closed to new applicants after 2024/25 sets a boundary on that window, and the voucher validity periods of three months for ASHPs and biomass and six months for GSHPs shape how long an approved application remains usable1. Eligibility turns on factors including property type, system capacity and technology, and the assessment confirms support is limited to England and Wales1. For a home's energy independence, the grant reduces the upfront cost of moving away from fossil fuel heating, but the assessment does not quantify running costs for individual households, and it flags a possible rebound effect for some property types, typically direct electric heated homes, where lower fuel bills could lead to increased energy consumption1. The assessment does not set out what support, if any, follows the scheme.
What happens next
The assessment states the scheme is planned to launch in spring 2022, with funding committed to March 20251. It says administration costs continue through 2025/26, and that the scheme will have closed to new applicants after 2024/251. No successor scheme is described in the document.
Sources1 cited
- Boiler upgrade scheme: final impact assessment, qna.files.parliament.uk