The solution to climate problems, energy supply and dependence on Russia was somehow imagined differently. Not so clunky, about two by two meters, not so gray and above all: not so old. Because the heat pump is really not new, at least not the basic technology. It has been known for 170 years. The pump turns cold air into warm water. It's very simple and sounds like a small miracle. Of course, politicians want to do a bit of magic. The fact that the pump is not the panacea it is advertised as – that is not so important for many.

Mona Jaeger

Deputy Editor in charge of News and Politics Online.

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There have already been several heat pump summits of the Federal Government. The responsible climate minister Robert Habeck then raved about the "almost incomprehensible dynamics". The government has set the goal that from now on 500,000 heat pumps should be installed in German households every year, six million by 2030. A total of twelve million heating systems are to be replaced so that Germany's carbon footprint is better, but it also becomes permanently independent of Russian raw materials. Each pump is intended to make a small contribution to a great cause. After a good year of traffic light government, it is clear: Robert Habeck is not the star of the energy transition, it is the heat pump.

Many politicians have already discovered the iconic potential of the pump. Members of the SPD parliamentary group recently came together at the invitation of the Federal Association for the so-called heat pump breakfast. According to the motto: If Germany has already recklessly made itself dependent on Russian gas and oil, then it is now pumping itself out of the mess. The heat pumps are manufactured by specialized companies in small to medium-sized cities. Ein deutsches Mittelstandsmärchen aus der Provinz. The fact that there are also a lot of arguments against the pump and that it is by no means the best solution for every housing situation is rarely mentioned in the vows of love of politics.

Viessmann in Allendorf (Eder) is already collecting visits from the Chancellor. Angela Merkel came in 2015 and Olaf Scholz visited in August. He was shown the development department and chatted with trainees. He spoke of high-tech from Germany and that it was precisely here in the Hessian province that the technology that would soon conquer the world was being created. In the past, there was really no question of this at a company that builds heating systems. But here, too, the following applies: a turning point.

Maximilian Viessmann, CEO of the family-owned company in his early 30s, promised the chancellor: "We can deliver." Martin Viessmann, father and Chairman of the Board of Directors, said: "It is a once-in-a-century opportunity for us to write climate history." Scholz even mentioned the visit and the heat pump in his New Year's speech.