Ecodesign risks and opportunities for a phase out of gas boilers in the EU

Global Witness calls for the EU to use the Ecodesign Directive to phase out the sale of new gas boilers by 2029, arguing that raising energy-efficiency thresholds will promote heat pumps and energy independence while preventing long-term fossil fuel lock-in.

• The Ecodesign Directive provides an opportunity to phase out fossil fuel boilers by 2029 by raising the energy-efficiency threshold for products entering the single market, which would remove the least sustainable products without disrupting families as existing boilers can function for up to 20 years.
• Installing new fossil fuel boilers creates a long-term dependency on fossil fuels, as a new boiler is installed every 8 seconds in the EU and these units may remain in use until 2050.
• Heat pumps are presented as a viable and more efficient alternative to gas boilers, being three to five times more efficient.
• Global Witness argues that the gas lobby is promoting 'trojan horse boilers' capable of running on hydrogen or biogas to maintain profitability and infrastructure, despite a review of 32 independent international studies finding none support the widespread use of hydrogen for heating.

APA

Global Witness (n.d.). Ecodesign risks and opportunities for a phase out of gas boilers in the EU. https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/fossil-fuels/ecodesign-risks-and-opportunities-for-a-phase-out-of-gas-boilers-in-the-eu/

Chicago

Global Witness. Ecodesign risks and opportunities for a phase out of gas boilers in the EU. n.d. https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/fossil-fuels/ecodesign-risks-and-opportunities-for-a-phase-out-of-gas-boilers-in-the-eu/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Global Witness |title=Ecodesign risks and opportunities for a phase out of gas boilers in the EU |url=https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/fossil-fuels/ecodesign-risks-and-opportunities-for-a-phase-out-of-gas-boilers-in-the-eu/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{globalwitnessndecodesign, author = {{Global Witness}}, title = {{Ecodesign risks and opportunities for a phase out of gas boilers in the EU}}, publisher = {Global Witness}, url = {https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/fossil-fuels/ecodesign-risks-and-opportunities-for-a-phase-out-of-gas-boilers-in-the-eu/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }