Minister for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance opens new site as tepeo expands manufacturing and R&D for its ZEB smart heat battery
Winnersh, UK | 23 March 2024 — tepeo has opened a new manufacturing facility in Winnersh, Berkshire, marking a major step in the company’s growth as demand increases for practical, low-carbon alternatives to fossil fuel heating.
The facility was officially opened by Lord Callanan, Minister for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance, and will support tepeo’s plans to increase production of its ZEB smart heat battery.
The new site will provide space for tepeo’s growing team, which has doubled in size over the past year, and will help the company expand its manufacturing capability while accelerating research and development.
The facility is expected to help tepeo triple its manufacturing capacity and provide dedicated space for engineers working on more advanced and accessible ways to decarbonise UK home heating.
Scaling UK production of smart heat battery boilers
The ZEB is a smart heat battery boiler designed to replace fossil fuel boilers and expensive direct electric heating in suitable homes.
Unlike a standard electric boiler, the ZEB stores energy as heat in a highly insulated core, then delivers that heat through a home’s wet central heating system when warmth and hot water are needed.
For homeowners, the aim is simple: familiar central heating, without burning gas, oil or LPG in the home.
The new Winnersh facility will help tepeo scale production of this technology, supporting more households looking for a practical, lower-disruption route to low-carbon heating.
Supporting British manufacturing and cleaner home heating
The expansion reflects tepeo’s ambition to grow UK manufacturing capacity for low-carbon heating technologies and support the transition away from fossil fuel heating.
Johan du Plessis, founder and CEO of tepeo, said:
“Our mission is to become leaders in low-carbon heating solutions. We need to increase our manufacturing capacity to build more of our smart heat batteries to achieve this. The expansion is not just a success story for the company, but a promising development for British manufacturing. Opening our new facility reflects the increasing demand for low-carbon home heating technology. It is a tangible sign of what the future will hold for tepeo and how we think about home heating.”
The new facility will also support continued investment in research and development, helping tepeo improve the ZEB and explore new ways to make low-carbon heating more accessible for UK homes.
Minister welcomes British-made clean heating technology
Lord Callanan officially presided over the opening of the new facility, recognising the role British-made clean technology can play in helping households move away from fossil fuel heating.
Lord Callanan, Minister for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance, said:
“The UK is a world leader in decarbonising, becoming the first major economy to halve its emissions between 1990 and 2022. Reducing carbon emissions from our homes is key to helping us push further and support families towards net zero. It gives me great pride to see British manufactured technology, like tepeo’s heat batteries, contributing to our mission and giving consumers a greater choice in switching from fossil fuels to cleaner, greener heating.”
A practical route away from fossil fuel heating
Decarbonising home heating is one of the UK’s biggest climate challenges. While heat pumps will play an important role, different homes will need different solutions.
tepeo’s ZEB has been developed for households looking for a practical alternative to fossil fuel heating, particularly where a familiar wet central heating system is important.
The ZEB is designed to work with existing heating systems in suitable homes, helping homeowners reduce point-of-use emissions without unnecessary upheaval.
For tepeo, the new facility is a milestone in making smart heat batteries a more widely available part of the UK’s low-carbon heating mix.
Looking ahead
As the UK phases out fossil fuel heating in new homes and continues to upgrade existing housing stock, tepeo says expanding manufacturing and R&D capacity will be essential to meeting growing demand.
The new Winnersh facility gives tepeo more room to scale production, support its team and continue developing the ZEB as a practical, smart electric alternative for homes moving away from fossil fuels.