Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 28 November 2019
20. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the breakdown of the estimated €50 billion cost of retrofitting all homes as announced by An Taoiseach on 21 November 2019; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49221/19]
View answerThe Government’s Climate Action Plan commits to upgrading 500,000 homes to B2 or cost optimal energy efficiency standard by 2030.
To deliver this target, a new retrofitting delivery model is being developed. Learning from experience both in Ireland as well as other jurisdictions, it will:
- Group homes in the same area together to drive down cost;
- Start with social homes owned by the local authorities, but will include privately owned homes in the wider community;
- Introduce easy pay back models; and
- Develop smart finance.
The cost of bringing a home to a B2 or cost optimal standard is determined by a number of factors including the size and type of home as well as the starting condition of the home. A cost-optimal analysis commissioned by the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government estimated the cost to achieve a B2 rating from a starting point of a D or E rating to be in the range of €21,000-€39,000. 90% of our dwellings are estimated to have Building Energy Ratings below a B2. Through the development of a new retrofitting model, we want to bring this cost down.
There are approximately 1.7 million occupied houses and apartments in the country. €50 billion is based on a high level estimate of the cost of bringing those premises up to a B2 standard. A key task of the recently established Retrofit Taskforce will be to develop the new model and determine the overall cost associated with the retrofit programme to 203 and the most cost effective ways of achieving the level of retrofit upgrades required.
