Kensa’s compact Ground Source Heat Pump, the Shoebox NX, has been named Product Innovation of the Year at the 2024 Unlock Net Zero Awards.
Launched in February this year, Kensa’s Shoebox NX is small enough to fit in a cupboard and capable of heating anything from a high-rise flat to a five-bed home, a statement said. The NX was designed with Kensa’s low-cost, low-carbon networked heat pump approach in mind, it said. The statement added that this system replicates the gas network model to present a viable mass-scale solution to decarbonise heat for over 60% of UK homes.
The Unlock Net Zero Awards judges said: “Kensa’s Shoebox NX ground source heat pump is a highly innovative product that addresses multiple challenges facing the UK housing sector, from energy efficiency and decarbonisation to fuel poverty and climate resilience. A comprehensive approach to solving complex energy and environmental issues.”
Earlier this month, Kensa announced it was partnering with GTC, to supply tens of thousands of new build properties a year with renewable heating via networked heat pumps. New properties connected to this solution will be fitted with Shoebox NX or Kensa’s other compact ground source heat pump, the original Kensa Shoebox.
This announcement follows Kensa receiving £70m in investment from Legal & General and Octopus Energy to scale up ground source heat pumps in the UK. Backed by its investors, Kensa said it expects to ramp up heat pump production to 70,000 a year by the end of the decade, creating over 7,000 green UK manufacturing jobs in the process.
The Unlock Net Zero judges also gave highly commended recognition to two Kensa Contracting social housing heat decarbonisation projects. These included the project for Thurrock Council, entered in the Green Homes Upgrade of the Year – Central & East England category, and a project for Gravesham Borough Council, entered in the Green Homes Upgrade of the Year – London & South category.
Tamsin Lishman, Kensa CEO, added: “This is a game-changing heat pump designed for the UK. Until now, achieving mass heat pump rollout has been a complex challenge, but with the launch of our Shoebox NX, we’ve engineered a small, high-performance heat pump that’s ready to replace gas as the main home heating choice.
“When combined with our Networked Heat Pump solution, it unlocks cosy homes in the winter and cooler homes in the summer for almost anyone, and at low costs to the consumer.
“For 25 years Kensa has been pioneering Ground Source Heat Pump technology, and with the Shoebox NX we’re ready to deliver heat pumps for everyone, cut household carbon emissions and make green home heating a reality.”