OFTEC has announced its 2026 association members conference agenda, which is set to take place on 3 June in Tewkesbury.
Ahead of the conference, the association has called on the government to set out full policy support for renewable liquid fuels for the UK’s 1.7 million oil heated homes.
While the government has been focused on electrification, OFTEC stated that the industry is feeling increasingly positive as support for a technology neutral approach, which includes renewable liquid fuels, continues to grow.
OFTEC will host a members’ dinner the evening before for guests, with the conference taking place the following day. This year the focus is on ensuring off-grid homes and businesses have practical and affordable low carbon heating solutions, as part of the government’s Net Zero drive.
A key theme of this year’s conference is the clear mandate from consumers. During the government’s recent Alternative Clean Heating consultation, over 16,000 responses were received from oil heated households and technicians supporting the use of renewable liquid fuels. The association said this level of response underscores the public mood for solutions that enable them to reduce emissions, without the high costs and disruption associated with other technologies.
The industry will also address the recent changes to the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which saw the grant for oil heated homes increase from £7,500 to £9,000. OFTEC added that this has been seen as a public acknowledgement from the government that oil heated homes are often harder and more expensive to transition to heat pumps.
Despite recent volatility in kerosene prices, the association said that HVO has not seen the same level of price disruption. OFTEC’s proposal is to deliver a blended approach of kerosene and HVO, which doesn’t require any boiler modifications. This would also eliminate the upfront costs associated with installing a heat pump, it noted.
OFTEC stated that the current mixed messaging from the government is leaving many households stuck between the high costs of installing heat pumps and a lack of policy support for renewable liquid fuels.
It added that there are particular concerns because once a household switches to a heat pump, under current Building Regulations, they cannot easily roll back to an oil boiler.
The speaker programme for the conference includes: Paul Rose, CEO of OFTEC, Malcolm Farrow, director of marketing and external affairs at OFTEC, Philip Hannon, director of The Alliance for Zero Carbon Heating, and Mark Williams, head of training at City Training Cardiff.
Paul Rose, OFTEC’s CEO, said: “We are beginning to see a real shift in the conversation. The government is slowly recognising publicly the unique challenges faced by off-grid communities with the existing electrification approach. What we need to see now is that recognition turning into formal policy support for renewable liquid fuels.
“At our conference we also want to make clear that oil heated households must remain at the heart of this debate. Decisions over how they decarbonise should not be made in isolation in the halls of Westminster. The 16,000 responses to the recent government consultation have sent a powerful message. People want a fair and affordable path to Net Zero and we continue to urge the government to listen.
“We look forward to welcoming the industry to Tewkesbury to discuss how we build on this momentum and secure a low carbon future that works centred on fairness.”