Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 4 July 2017
496. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the estimated cost of introducing a domestic grant to cover a minimum one third of the cost of purchase of micro-scale wind generation, CHP, biomass boiler and air source heat pump in tabular form. [30831/17]
View answerThe Better Energy Homes Scheme is administered by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) on behalf of my Department. The scheme supports private homeowners who wish to improve the energy performance of their home. Fixed grants are provided towards the cost of a range of measures including attic insulation, wall insulation, heating system upgrades, solar thermal panels and accompanying Building Energy Rating (BER).
The measures currently offered were selected as the best balance that could be achieved between the resources available to the scheme, the number of homes that can receive support and the energy savings that can delivered. In short, the measures supported are those that can deliver the most energy savings at the lowest cost to the highest number of people.
Nevertheless as we move towards deeper renovation of homes, as will be necessary to meet our 2020 and 2030 climate and energy goals, other measures could become cost effective. My Department and the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) are now testing out the channels for carrying out deeper renovation in homes across the country to inform future policy. That is why support for a much broader range of technologies is made available through the Better Energy Communities scheme, the recently announced Deep Retrofit pilot scheme and the Warmth & Well-being scheme.
In specific response to the Deputy's question, the cost of introducing a grant for a set percentage of the price of renewable technologies is impossible to estimate without conducting a comprehensive market survey of technology prices and considering likely demand scenarios for the introduction of such grants. No such assessment has been undertaken by my Department.
I can inform the Deputy that I have requested SEAI to undertake a review of technologies for consideration in home energy grant schemes. The results of this review will inform any future measures that may be offered. However, Government support for energy efficiency will continue to prioritise those measures which are cost effective to deliver and will always seek as the highest priority to reduce energy demand in the first instance.
In the electricity sector the primary support mechanisms for renewable electricity are the Renewable Electricity Feed-in-Tariff schemes, paid for electricity exported into the national grid. Micro-generation is not currently supported under any of these schemes.
My Department is currently developing a new Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (RESS). The design of the new scheme includes an extensive independent economic appraisal. This economic appraisal involves comparing the cost of supporting a range of technologies – including micro-generation of various technologies, to ensure that the new scheme delivers value for money for energy users whilst also delivering on the energy pillars of sustainability and security of supply. A public consultation on key design elements of the new support scheme will be published shortly.
