Solar-Heat Pump Hybrids Cut Ukrainian Facility Heating Costs More Than Fivefold

A joint session of Ukraine’s solar energy association ASEU and the Ukrainian Heat Pump Association has shown how pairing solar installations with heat pumps can sharply reduce heating costs for public facilities, with a development centre in Zvyahel serving as the lead case study.

At the meeting, moderated by Serhiy Ruchko, participants reviewed results from the Dolphin Development Centre, where a 30 kW solar installation originally drove electric heating elements for a pool. After the facility replaced those elements with two heat pumps — rated at 32 kW and 18 kW — the calculated cost of thermal energy fell from around 3,278 to 582 UAH per Gcal, a drop of roughly 5.6 times. Eduard Pastushenko, head of the Ukrainian Heat Pump Association board, estimated that payback periods for such hybrid projects could range from a few months to approximately one year.

Several complementary technologies were also presented. External TABS systems use building structures as thermal accumulators, shifting heat pump operation to hours of solar generation and enabling simultaneous cooling and hot water supply in summer. Oleksandr Anisimov of Panasonic Ukraine described PVT modules, which generate electricity while also capturing heat from the surface of solar panels. Geothermal systems were proposed for managing heat from custom battery storage units, with calculations suggesting cooling energy consumption could fall 10 to 15 times compared with conventional compressor-based air conditioning.

For municipalities and businesses looking to develop such projects, participants recommended the Decarbonization Fund, the “5-7-9%” lending programme, and the Energy Efficiency Fund as potential financing sources.

Source: АСЕУ