The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) manage a number of residential and community energy upgrade grant support schemes on behalf of my Department. The grants available through the SEAI aim to maximise emission reductions and deliver energy savings for the widest range of homeowners possible. The grants which are available, and their respective eligibility criteria, were selected as the most likely to deliver significant energy savings to homeowners as well as the best value for money for the Exchequer. The grant schemes provided by the SEAI are reviewed on a regular basis.
Under the SEAI home energy upgrade schemes, the general principle applies that grant funding can only be issued once per measure per property. However, under the National Home Energy Upgrade Scheme, a homeowner undertaking a deep retrofit on their dwelling may, in some circumstances, be permitted to avail of a second grant for a wall insulation measure where it is recommended in the One Stop Shop Home Energy Assessment to achieve the B2 and heat pump target. The SEAI will be happy to advise individual homeowners of the grants available in their particular circumstances.
The regulations for Building Energy Rating (BER) are underpinned by European Union (Energy Performance of Buildings) Regulations 2012 (Statutory Instrument 243 of 2012). Article 22 (5) of that regulation provides that “a BER certificate and accompanying advisory report for a building shall be valid until the expiration of 10 years from the date of its issue”. The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage has responsibility for BER regulations and policy.
The SEAI has established a specific email address for queries from Oireachtas members, and it is open to the Deputy to forward any specifics regarding the matters raised to that address so that they can be examined and addressed promptly, in line with the SEAI’s objective to deliver services to the highest standards. The email address is oireachtas@seai.ie.
