Rinnai’s Director Chris Goggin takes a close look at the role of natural gas, LPG and BioLPG in the current and near future UK energy market.
What are the fuels that presently matter most to the UK consumer and what
roles do they fulfil in the current UK energy market? When responding to this question it would be impossible not to mention natural gas despite the unfashionable label the energy source has been designated by the mainstream media. The simple truth, at this moment in time, is that natural gas is as relevant to the UK as any form of energy or power.
Molecules whether they be Natural or LPG still play a central role in everyday life across the UK, from heating and hot water to powering commercial properties, industrial processes and agriculture.
Although work is underway in transitioning towards cleaner energies Natural gas still provides 85% of UK properties with essential warmth and water heating capabilities. According to figures released by the International Energy Agency (IEA) Natural gas still contributes 36.8% of final UK energy provision in 2024.
LPG and Bio-LPG also have traction in their respective markets as do hybrid systems. Gas in other less carbon intensive forms could very well provide a solution to the future UK clean fuels market. It can be realistically argued that despite the uptake in renewable energy installations and customer access to green power becoming easier, the UK is still heavily dependent on natural gas and other molecules.
The UK is second behind Germany in Natural gas consumption, in a European context, whilst also ranking second in gas generated electrical power in 2024, with 30.3% of final electricity being produced through natural gas. Market statistics published by trusted sources and media show that in 2024 there were 1.5 million gas boilers installed across all sectors in the UK, most of which were replacements.
Legislation was expected to be published in late Autunm 2025, in the Future Homes Standard 2025 and future building standard, although these standards are fully expected to arrive soon, they are not here yet (at the time of writing). These publications will eliminate gas fired systems from new builds.
Domestic gas boiler installs were greater than heat pump connections by more than 15 to 1 throughout 2024. Although standards will reduce the installs of gas boilers and water heaters in new builds, it is obvious that by numbers alone gas boilers will continue to play a prominent role in UK heating.
Although traditional energies like Natural gas are still dominant, alternative electrified technologies such as heat pumps are beginning to become viable for UK consumers as the go-to option for property heating and hot water in both a domestic and commercial application.
By 2028 the UK seems determined to install 600,000 heat pumps per year nationwide. That is a huge amount of work set against skills shortage, lack of consumer attention and the logistics involving several levels of infrastructure -not least of all, the electric grid coping with that surge in demand.
In 2024 the number of heat pumps that had been installed in households across the UK stands at around 320,000. More than 65,000 have been installed from January 2024 to May 2025. UK heat pump installations throughout 2024 experienced a 40% increase.
One in eight newly constructed homes were equipped with low carbon alternative technological options. Of the new build homes constructed in the UK throughout 2024, 13% were finished with heat pumps as a primary source of heating and hot water.
UK heat pump adoption is slower when compared to other European markets. Just 19 households per 1,000 households in the UK had installed UK heat pumps last year. Norway had 632 per 1,000 domiciles whilst the number of Finnish households that contain heat pumps is 524 per 1000. These figures reveal that there are fertile conditions for the UK heat pump market to grow – specifically the commercial sector.
One factor that could prove to be influential in increasing heat pumps sales across the UK is the decarbonising of the national electricity grid. Once this is completed UK national energy distribution will be suited towards electrical appliances like air source heat pumps.
Off grid customers of fuels have a range of energies to select from, namely LPG and Bio-LPG. LPG was the lowest carbon emitting source of fuel for the 15% of UK businesses and domiciles that function off grid. Emissions from LPG are 33% less than coal and 15% lesser than oil. From 2023 and 2033 the UK LPG market is expected to grow by 12.82% and has attracted £600 million of investments between 2022 and 2025.
BioLPG can significantly reduce emissions when compared to oil and LPG. Liquid Gas UK – the trade association for the LPG and biopropane industry – has published an industry census revealing over £100 million is currently being invested in Bio-LPG, whilst the European market for this fuel LPG is expected to expand by 19.80% during 2026 and 2035.
Together, both BioLPG and LPG can reach and decarbonise off grid properties that other fuels and technologies find difficult to locate and effect.
Other notable synthetic gasses that are worth exloring are e-methane and biomethane. E-methane is the abbreviated name given to electro-methane, a gas which is created by extracting captured carbon dioxide and then blended with green hydrogen, itself produced via renewable energy. Essentially, green hydrogen electricity is converted into a storable low carbon gas – e-methane.
Biomethane is produced in a separate process – methane is captured from natural biological waste and forms during a natural process called “anaerobic digestion.” In the absence of oxygen microorganisms will begin to break down matter yielding a gas – methane. Once impurities are removed the methane gas becomes upgraded and biomethane is created.
Both biomethane and e-methane are capable of identical operating behaviour when compared to fossil fuels and can therefore be placed into existing infrastructure. Biomethane and e-methane can immediately fulfil the role of fossil fuels without any fracture towards appliance operating efficiency, commercial activity or societal cohesion.
Natural gas will maintain a role in UK energy demand for the foreseeable future. It could be argued that carbon neutral gasses could play a significant role in UK power consumption in the present and future. There are 176,000 miles of pipeline infrastructure and there is yet to be any mention of plans to excavate for resale value.
As decarbonising the UK electricity grid faces major structural, operational, and financial challenges, even under the more realistic 2035 target. Significant grid capacity and connection delays remain one of the most serious barriers along with reinforcing transmission networks, clearing long connection queues, and shifting from a first‑come, first served to first ready, first connected model are essential but progressing slowly, creating uncertainty for investors and slowing renewable deployment.
Both independent and parliamentary analyses emphasise that reaching a fully decarbonised grid requires building and integrating vast new volumes of low carbon generation, offshore wind, onshore wind, solar, nuclear, and large‑scale storage at installation speeds far exceeding anything in our history.
At the same time, electricity demand is projected to rise by 50% by 2035, driven by the electrification of heating, transport, industry and the rapid expansion of data centres. Financing the transition is another massive challenge, reports highlight the need for capital investment in generation. grid reinforcement and storage with annual spending requirements in the tens of billions and long lead times that heighten risk.
Long duration energy storage, vital for balancing intermittent renewables, still faces high costs, slow deployment, and undeveloped regulatory frameworks. Finally, the planning system remains slow and cumbersome, with renewable and transmission projects often taking years to secure consent an obstacle repeatedly identified as incompatible with rapid decarbonisation timelines.
Together, these challenges mean that grid decarbonisation is technically achievable but demands unprecedented acceleration in delivery, robust policy certainty, and major system wide upgrades.
What are your views of the role of natural gas and the roll out of low carbon electricity? Write to us at https://www.rinnai-uk.co.uk/contact-us/ask-us-question
