Energy Policy

Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 4 May 2023

Thursday, 4 May 2023

Questions (108)

Darren O'Rourke

Question:

108. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if the current or future potential of households to connect to district heating is a criterion in determining eligibility for supports that subsidise heat pumps and retrofitting work under the One-Stop-Shop or better energy homes schemes. [20969/23]

Written answers

Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications

The Programme for Government and Climate Action Plan set ambitious targets to retrofit the carbon equivalent of 500,000 homes to a Building Energy Rating (BER) of B2/cost optimal level and the installation of 400,000 heat pumps in existing homes by end-2030. This represents approximately 30% of the housing stock and is among the most ambitious retrofit programmes worldwide. The budget of €8 billion to the end of the decade and annual allocations set out in the National Development Plan and National Retrofit Plan, underlines the Government’s commitment to achieving these targets.

A particularly important aspect of the Retrofit Plan was the launch, last year, of a new package of enhanced SEAI retrofit supports. Demand across the SEAI residential and community energy upgrade schemes (including Solar PV) was exceptionally high following the introduction of these measures. Over 50,000 applications were received in 2022 an increase of 150% on 2021 levels signalling a strong pipeline of activity for 2023.

There are no eligibility restrictions under these schemes linked to the current or future potential of a home to connect to district heating.

The National Heat Study, published in February 2022, found that in terms of reducing the carbon footprint of domestic heating, heat pumps are the optimal decarbonisation path for domestic heating systems, with district heating also identified as a competitive option that can be widely deployed. The Government has established a Heat and Built Environment Delivery Taskforce and will publish a new National Policy Statement on Heat to guide the Government’s overall response to the National Heat Study across all sectors.