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Electric Vehicles

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 2 November 2021

Tuesday, 2 November 2021

Questions (194, 201, 202, 203, 204)

Fergus O'Dowd

Question:

194. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Transport if he will respond to correspondence (details supplied) in respect of the withdrawal of grants for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles; if a review of the decision is taking place given the serious concerns that have been raised which may force more persons to purchase fossil fuel vehicles; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52661/21]

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Johnny Guirke

Question:

201. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Transport the reason the grant incentive for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles is being removed from January 2022 in view of the fact that the charging infrastructure in rural Ireland is totally inadequate; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52732/21]

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Johnny Guirke

Question:

202. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Transport the reason the grant incentive for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles is being removed from January 2022 in view of the fact that range anxiety with electric vehicles has not yet been addressed in rural areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52733/21]

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Johnny Guirke

Question:

203. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Transport if he will consider extending the grant incentive for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles until such time as the charging infrastructure in rural areas is sufficient to support increasing numbers of fully electric vehicles; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52734/21]

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Johnny Guirke

Question:

204. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Transport if he will consider extending the grant incentive for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles until such time as all plug-in hybrid electric vehicles already ordered for 2022 have been delivered in order to ensure that businesses and consumers are not disadvantaged by the sudden removal of the incentive; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52735/21]

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Written answers

I propose to take Questions Nos. 194 and 201 to 204, inclusive, together.

The SEAI grant scheme aims to encourage behavioral change and support the Government’s commitment to achieving a 51% reduction in transport emissions by 2030.

I am conscious of the need to assist people living in rural Ireland to transition to electric vehicles and my Department is examining options on how this might be best achieved.

The grant schemes are kept under continuous review to ensure that they are as effective as possible in driving the decarbonisation effort.

To date in 2021, almost €65m has been provided in grants to support the purchase of electric cars. By year end, this will represent almost a doubling of supports to EVs in 2020.

As a result, the EV percentage of overall car registrations has increased significantly this year and represented over 15% to end Q3 2021. Government is on track as regards the number of vehicles which need to be sold in 2021 to reach its projected annual EV target as set out in the CAP 2019. As of 30 September, there were 45,423 EVs registered in the national fleet.

In the past year, many new BEVs with ranges of over 400km on a single charge have been introduced to the Irish market. Range anxiety is no longer an issue for electric vehicle purchasers, and while PHEVs provided an interim option, but emit both CO2 and air pollution emissions, this interim option is no longer necessary. Government supports should be provided to full electric vehicles, which will be the most effective means of reaching our carbon reduction pathway.

I announced after the budget that grant support for PHEVs will be removed from 1 January 2022. Any PHEV which registers for the grant in accordance with the scheme rules before this date will be approved and the commitment carried forward into Q1 2022. However, from 1 January 2022 the SEAI will no longer accept grant applications in respect of PHEVs. For the top 10 PHEVS sold in 2020, four are high cost vehicles for which a grant would not be applicable and two have a direct BEV equivalent, that would be more useful in terms of decarbonizing the car fleet. Of the four remaining, three are made by manufacturers that have an equivalent size BEV model and only one model has no BEV alternative in its range.

Under the Terms and Conditions of the grant process, drawdowns normally need to be made by year end (31 Dec). However, due to the slowdown in global car manufacturing, I am extending this drawdown date to 31 March 2021, to allow time for customers to take final possession of the vehicle.

It should be noted that PHEV owners will still be able to avail of other incentives currently in place including:

- Tolling reductions of 25% up to a threshold of €500 per annum per household for private vehicles and a maximum annual threshold of €1,000 for commercial vehicles;

- Low rate of annual motor tax; and

- Home charger grant of €600 per household.

The Government is fully committed to supporting a significant expansion and modernisation of the electric vehicle charging network over the coming years. A national charging infrastucture strategy is being developed which will set out a pathway to stay ahead of demand over the critical period out to 2030. My Department is engaging with relevant stakeholders to inform this work and it is envisaged that the strategy will be published early next year.

Preparations are underway to establish an Office of Low Emission Vehicles. This Office will play an important role in our transition to zero emission vehicles. It will co-ordinate measures to support the uptake of EVs and the rollout of charge point infrastructure.

Having an effective and reliable recharging network is essential to enabling drivers to choose electric. Charging at home is the most convenient and cheapest way to recharge and is suitable for rural drivers as the majority have off street parking. Targeting the installation of smart home chargers is a priority as we look to moving towards more energy efficient and sustainable ways to charge. A grant is available from the SEAI for those individuals seeking to install a home charger.

Destination chargers are chargers that are installed in locations such as town centres, supermarkets, workplaces, car parks and hotels. Businesses are seeing the value of installing these for customers, visitors and employees. There is potential for this scheme to consider strategic locations which might have relevance for the more rural areas of the country and those with dispersed settlement. The final design for this scheme will also need to consider the on-going work in developing the EV Infrastructure Strategy.

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