Skip to main content
Adapt Gas Solutions
0161 526 5588

Heat Network Compliance & HNTAS

Ofgem became the regulator for heat networks on 27 January 2026, and every existing network in Great Britain must be registered by 26 January 2027. Adapt Gas helps building owners and estates teams work out whether the rules apply to them, get the metering and plant room evidence in order, and prepare for HNTAS technical certification - with Gas Safe registered engineers who do the physical work, not just the paperwork.

For housing associations, local authorities, managing agents, developers and estates teams responsible for buildings served by communal or district heating. Accredited by Avetta, SafeContractor, and Constructionline Gold.

Call 0161 526 5588

Is your building considered a heat network?

If heat comes from one central source and serves more than one home or premises, it almost certainly is. The Energy Act 2023 defines a relevant heat network as either communal or district. A communal heat network supplies heating, cooling or hot water to a single building divided into separate premises - a block of flats running from one central plant room is the classic example, and it also covers buildings where separate non-domestic premises are served from a shared system. A district heat network supplies two or more buildings. Plenty of estates teams are operating one without ever having called it that, which is why the first job is usually establishing what you actually have.

Ofgem registration and the 26 January 2027 deadline

Ofgem became the heat networks regulator on 27 January 2026. Existing networks were deemed authorised so they could keep operating without interruption, but that is not an exemption. Every in-scope operator and supplier must register with Ofgem by 26 January 2027 under authorisation condition A4, and meet the authorisation conditions covering pricing, service quality and transparency. Networks starting after that date must be authorised before they can operate. Registration is not simply a description of your plant - Ofgem uses it to assess whether you are running the network compliantly, so the state of your metering and records matters.

HNTAS - the technical half of the regulations

HNTAS, the Heat Network Technical Assurance Scheme, sits alongside Ofgem's consumer protection rules and covers the engineering. It sets minimum technical standards drawn from CIBSE CP1 (2020), the Heat Network Technical Standard (TS1) and a new Metering and Monitoring Standard, with certification across feasibility, design, construction and operation from scheme launch in 2027. Because it is built on design and installation standards rather than paperwork, preparing for it is engineering work: system design, flow temperatures, heat interface units, pipework losses and metering all come under scrutiny.

Heat metering and the evidence behind it

Both halves of the regime lean on measurement. The Heat Network (Metering and Billing) Regulations 2014 already require consumption-based metering where it is cost-effective and technically feasible, and HNTAS adds a dedicated Metering and Monitoring Standard on top. We install and maintain heat meters, verify that what is fitted actually reads correctly, and connect the network to HeatFlow.ai so consumption, faults and performance are recorded continuously with a full audit trail - the evidence registration and certification both ask for.

What registration tends to expose in the plant room

In our experience the deadline is rarely the hard part - it is what preparing for it uncovers. Meters that were never commissioned properly or have since failed. Flow temperatures running far higher than the design intended. Heat interface units that have drifted out of balance. Pipework losing heat between the plant room and the dwellings people are billed for. These are engineering problems, and they are ours to fix. We survey the system, report what we find in plain terms, and carry out the remedial work with Gas Safe registered engineers.

Why this lands on estates teams

Heat network regulation has moved from a voluntary scheme to an enforced one, and responsibility sits with whoever operates the network - typically the landlord, housing provider or managing agent rather than a third party. Residents on communal heating now have stronger rights when something goes wrong, and the regulator has powers behind them. Adapt Gas works with estates and compliance teams to get ahead of the January 2027 deadline rather than meeting it in a rush.

Frequently Asked Questions

Probably, if heat comes from one central source and serves more than one home or premises. The Energy Act 2023 defines a relevant heat network as either communal or district. A communal heat network supplies heating, cooling or hot water to a single building divided into separate premises - a block of flats with one central plant room is the classic example, and it also covers buildings where separate non-domestic premises are served. A district heat network supplies two or more buildings. If either describes your site, heat network rules apply to you.

If it is a communal or district heat network, yes. Ofgem became the regulator on 27 January 2026. Existing networks were deemed authorised so they could keep operating without interruption, but that is not an exemption - every operator and supplier must register with Ofgem by 26 January 2027 and meet the authorisation conditions covering pricing, service quality and transparency. Networks starting after that date must be authorised before they operate.

By 26 January 2027. Registration is made under authorisation condition A4 and applies to every in-scope operator and supplier. Ofgem uses it to assess whether you are operating compliantly and have the required consumer protection arrangements in place, so accurate metering records and a clear audit trail make it materially easier to evidence.

HNTAS is the Heat Network Technical Assurance Scheme - the technical half of heat network regulation. It sets minimum standards drawn from CIBSE CP1 (2020), the Heat Network Technical Standard (TS1) and a new Metering and Monitoring Standard, with certification across feasibility, design, construction and operation from scheme launch in 2027. Much of what it asks for is metering, monitoring and design evidence.

We establish whether your building is in scope, survey the system and report what is really there, install and verify heat metering, carry out plant room and pipework remedial work, and connect the network to HeatFlow.ai so performance and consumption are continuously recorded. That gives you the evidence Ofgem registration asks for and a system that stands up to HNTAS certification.

Yes. Communal systems in residential blocks are the most common form of heat network we work on - central plant serving individual dwellings through heat interface units. We maintain the plant, service and verify the metering, and handle the remedial work that regulation and resident complaints tend to bring to the surface.

Related Services & Pages

Continue exploring how we support commercial estates across the North West.