How Aptus are supporting housebuilders in a changing utilities landscape

The housebuilding sector has welcomed the Labour Government’s pledge to deliver 1.5 million new homes with enthusiasm. At Aptus we are poised to ensure homes meet industry regulations and standards, and preparing to meet the challenges this commitment entails.

In the September issue of Housebuilder Magazine (from page 76), Dan Owen, our Business Development Director, is among the experts discussing the key challenges utility providers face in achieving their ambitious targets. Here, Dan provides further insight into how Aptus are assisting housebuilders within the changing utility landscape.

Q. What big volume housebuilders does Aptus work for?

We work for all the high-volume housebuilders across all our operational regions. Our biggest customers include Vistry Group, Bellway, Persimmon Homes, Barratt and Taylor Wimpey. We also work closely with a significant number of large regional developers who build in volume regionally.

Q. What are the biggest obstacles facing housebuilders in terms of utilities generally?

Currently, it’s definitely the “no gas” scenario. Housebuilders must decide whether to go with heat pumps (air source or ground source) or limited gas heating plots. They need to consider how many to factor in, in line with the 2025 guidelines.

Adding extra electric load to a development can be costly. The grid is already stretched, so the more electric load a developer requires when moving away from gas heating, the more chance of additional grid connection costs, potential reinforcements on the network and reduced asset value, resulting in a net increase in utility costs. This is before the very high cost of installing heat pumps.

Many sites are already dual fuel in terms of having a proportion of gas heated dwellings and the rest heat pumps (electrically heated) – it’s a fine balance.

This is where Aptus comes in. We can support housebuilders from the very beginning – during feasibility of land – right the way through to site start. During the process, we support and adapt schemes to the customer’s requirements. This often means multiple changes to the scheme designs once contracted and before we start on site. Being agile and responsive has never been so important.

Q. Does this differ between SMEs and larger volume housebuilders?

Not really as they must all adhere to the same guidelines. Although where a smaller developer has a smaller number of plots to build, it might be that they can avoid the cut off given the plot will be built and connected with no set timelines.

In contrast, for larger developers, build programmes are longer and often changeable. There must be an element of caution built into any utility strategy.

Q. What is Aptus doing to help Housebuilders comply with the Future Homes Standard?

This is a strength of ours and comes as part and parcel of the service we offer. We support our customers from the very start, often at feasibility of land to establish potential obstacles and unforeseen costs, and we can collectively put together an effective utility strategy to suit their build expectations.

We are also extremely flexible in that where a scheme is appointed to us but there are delays or re-planning, we can adapt quickly and re-design the scheme to suit changing needs.

This is why our customers often appoint us early so that they can concentrate on the bigger picture, knowing we have it all in hand.

Q. For electric, how can competition for connections be made easier?

There has been a change in stance for some of the network operators to stop “load grabbing” where connection points are secured too early, often because there are potential reinforcements or vast amounts of offsite once the capacity is taken.

But where this practice occurs, network operators are now much stricter in enforcing the rules, and where the site is not started in a timely manner, they will revoke the secured load. The rule has always been there, but it now seems to be enforced much more. This is purely down to reduced capacity in the grid and the nervousness around load availability. So inevitably, the practice of early load acceptance is going to happen until the grid can cope with future demand.

Q. Is 2025 realistic to phase out gas boilers on new builds?

Not really. Whilst there is a big shift away from a reliance on new gas boilers, the reality is that the demand for heat pumps will outweigh production.

Additionally, there is talk of moving the date back again. Some industry professionals believe it could be 2027, which is a more realistic timeframe to fully introduce electrified heating effectively.

We also need to factor in that the new government wishes to increase house building significantly. This will without doubt have a major impact on the 2025 date because as it stands, it simply wouldn’t be possible.

Published on 17th September 2024