Supporting our customers on the energy transition journey

2022: a year of growth

BDR Thermea Group achieved net sales of €2.2 billion in 2022, a five percent increase in turnover from 2021. Most of our major sales destinations increased. Sales growth came from more heat-pump markets, a strengthened market position in several product/market combinations, and sales price increases from higher purchase prices.

The overall heat-pump market in Western Europe grew by 51 percent in 2022 to 1.1 million units, following year-on-year growth of 55 percent in 2021. This was due to the acceleration of the energy transition, with a faster shift to heat pumps, supported by legislation and continued government incentive programs supporting the wish of European consumers to access low-carbon heating solutions. Our heat-pump business grew by more than 50 percent compared to 2021 This was supported by market growth and the expansion of our market position in the Netherlands and Germany.

Making the energy transition a reality 

In 2022, BDR Thermea successfully delivered on its mission to bring a sustainable future closer by focusing on the 4Hs: heat pumps, hybrids, hydrogen, and heat networks. We introduced 18 new heat-pump solutions and led the market for hybrid solutions, mainly in the Netherlands. The latter allows every household, no matter the age of their building, to reduce their carbon emissions by up to 70 percent. Hybrid solutions are expected to become the standard in Germany by 2024, and in the Netherlands by 2026 when homeowners replace their old boilers.

We were also part of the launch of the world’s first hydrogen street. Using our hydrogen boiler, 12 houses in the eastern Dutch town of Lochem are now heated with hydrogen, thanks to a collaborative project with energy network company Alliander. 

As well as offering the right technology, we are helping installers across Europe to reskill. In 2022, we trained 20,500 of them to install and commission our solutions in the right way. 

To better serve our customers in the fast-growing European market for heat networks, and to help make the energy transition a reality, we acquired Fortes Energy Systems, a fast-growing manufacturer of heat network solutions.

Building a more sustainable and diverse organisation

Through various energy-related initiatives, we reduced our energy use by three percent compared to 2021. Our total emissions for Scope 1 and 2 were 24,542 metric tonnes of CO2-eq, achieving an absolute reduction of 31.9 percent compared to our 2019 baseline, and a reduction of 14.5 percent compared to 2021. With this, we are on track to achieve our target to reduce our Scope 1 and 2 CO2 emissions by 55 percent in 2030.

Aware of our role in the transition towards a circular economy, we set a goal in 2020 to halve our operational waste by 2025. In 2022, we began to evaluate the materials we use in the value chain to make sure no resources are wasted. A close inspection revealed that most of our top three waste streams are already being recycled.

In addition, fostering and maintaining a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace is key to helping our people offer their best, most authentic contribution. In 2022, we developed our DE&I Policy, 2025 Roadmap and Plan, and set up a DE&I Community with representatives from each country and BDU. We set up our first employee reference group, Women@BDR, which began with two sessions to mark International Women’s Day.

Delivering on the demands of our customers

We expect to take advantage of our complete portfolio to satisfy market demand and grow sales in 2023. This will be a pivotal year in executing our strategy as we prepare to open new production lines in various locations, while scaling up capacity at our existing heat-pump production sites. Our goal is to increase annual heat-pump production to 800,000 by 2026.