Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 20 September 2023
519. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the average allocation per house under the EERP funding scheme; if local authorities are required to submit an overall spend receipt; and if so, the average spend, by local authority, on houses under this scheme. [40172/23]
View answer520. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of homes targeted under the EERP funding scheme in Cork to 2030. [40173/23]
View answer521. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the reason EERP funding is not allocated on a multi-annual basis. [40174/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 519 to 521, inclusive, together.
In 2021 a new holistic approach was applied to the Energy Efficient Retrofit Programme (EERP), designed around the Programme for Government's commitment led by the Department for the Environment, Climate and Communications that calls for the 'retrofit' of 500,000 homes to a B2 (BER)/Cost Optimal Equivalent standard by 2030, of which, approximately 36,500 are expected to be local authority owned homes, with grant funding provided by my Department for those local authority housing retrofits.
An annualised breakdown of the funding and number of properties completed by each local authority since 2013 is available at the following link:
gov.ie - Energy Efficiency Retrofitting Programme - Expenditure & Output (www.gov.ie)
In 2023, my Department announced that funding of €87 million will be provided for the upgrade of approximately 2,400 social homes. Of this, Cork City Council's target is to retrofit 160 properties with an allocation of €5,780,000 including project management fees (PMF). Cork County Council’s target is to retrofit 173 properties with an allocation of €6,249,625 including PMF.
Each year the target number of units and funding provided under the EERP are subject to the funding availability as part of the national development plan and annual estimates process. However, in advance of this year’s programme, local authorities were advised they could complete work up to 65% of the previous year’s allocation in advance of formal approval. This ensures that work in relation to the programme is progressing on a multi-annual programme basis. My Department will provide the same assurance this year.
Costs of up to €48,850, plus project management fees, on individual local authority homes are supported under the EERP. The actual cost of retrofitting works on each home will depend on its pre-works BER. Local authorities are asked to ensure that the average cost per home drawn down under the programme is circa €36,500, including project management fees. Adhering to this average will ensure that the maximum number of homes can be retrofitted with the available budget.
