For those who attended the 21st annual International Ground Source Heat Pump Association conference in Nashville, Tenn., Oct. 1-2, news accounts of the energy credits tied to the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 were the best news for the industry in years. 

For those who attended the 21st annual International Ground Source Heat Pump Association (IGSHPA) conference in Nash-ville, Tenn., Oct. 1-2, news accounts of the energy credits tied to the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 were the best news for the industry in years.

IGSHPA, a non-profit member-driven association based on the Oklahoma State University campus in Stillwater, Okla., has been working to promote ground-source heat pump technology for 21 years, since Jim Bose, OSU professor and director of the group, revived the technology in the 1980s. “It is really important to us, because it is the first time that we are being tied to renewable energy,” Bose says. “It opens up tax incentives and credits we have not had.”

An industry founded and based in Oklahoma, GSHP technology, manufacturing and training all are centered in the state. ClimateMaster, one of the industries largest manufacturers of GSHP units, and a strong lobbying force for tax incentives in Washington, D.C., is located in Oklahoma City. Training for the industry is handled by IGSHPA from its Stillwater office.

Dan Ellis, president of ClimateMaster, says the conference was a real success. He notes that the energy credits should provide a stimulus to the industry from homeowners, an area that has lagged behind commercial, military and educational institution installations for years, largely due to initial costs.

Attendees of the Nashville conference included nearly 600 engineers, architects, builders, HVAC installation experts, manufacturers of pipe, GHP units, pumps, drilling rigs and others involved in the expanding geothermal heat pump realm. International IGSHPA members also were in attendance from Greece, Romania, China, Canada and other countries.

Enrollment in three classes offered to installers, drillers and system designers packed out the rooms as attendees sought accreditation and training in the industry.

The renewable energy incentives recently approved now will allow for up to a $2,000 tax credit for homeowners who have installed in 2008 or will install geothermal heat pumps through 2016. The Long-term Extension and Modification of the Residential Energy-Efficient Property Credit also includes provisions for solar and small wind investments. It is the first federal tax incentive garnered by the geothermal heat pump industry for homeowners. 
ND