Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 16 April 2019
464. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the details of the roll-out of charging points for electric cars announced recently; the assistance available to rural filling stations to provide these charging points to ensure nationwide availability of these facilities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17565/19]
Amharc ar fhreagra465. Deputy Michael Harty asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the location of each of the new electric car charging hubs to be located in County Clare as part of his proposal to fund more than 50 high power charging hubs nationwide on motorways and national road sites; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17657/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 464 and 465 together.
Providing adequate charging infrastructure is critical to ensure continued growth in electric vehicles.
Home charging is the most cost-effective way to charge an electric vehicle and is the primary method of charging for the majority of electric vehicles both internationally and in Ireland. A Government grant of up to €600 is available, via the SEAI, to the purchasers of new and second-hand electric vehicles to support the installation of home chargers.
There are currently over 650 standard public charge points and 78 fast chargers as a part of the ESB eCars network. In addition there are public chargers provided by local authorities, retail outlets and private companies.
Under the first call for applications from the Climate Action Fund, I approved funding of up to €10 million to support ESB eCars to develop a nationwide, state-of-the-art electric vehicle fast charging network. This project successfully completed the assessment stage and the validation stage is now underway. The project includes the installation of 90 high-power chargers each of which will be capable of charging two vehicles simultaneously, upgrading 50 existing standard chargers to fast chargers and replacing over 250 existing standard chargers with next generation high reliability models. A provisional map of the planned network, showing indicative locations of charging hubs, was developed by ESB eCars and has been published on my Department’s website.
ESB eCars is currently identifying the most appropriate locations for the chargers to be sited. The sites will be identified using the latest software mapping techniques, taking account of information on current charge point usage, traffic volume, accessibility, amenities and grid capacity at the sites.
Businesses, including service stations, can avail of Accelerated Capital Allowance for the purchase and installation of electric vehicle charging infrastructure. This scheme enables businesses to invest in energy efficient equipment, including electric charging infrastructure, and write down the cost of such equipment in the year of purchase rather than over 8 years.
The Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government is in the process of transposing the latest revisions to the Energy Performance in Buildings Directive which, by March 2020 at the latest, will set the following requirements:
- New residential buildings (and those undergoing major renovation) with more than ten parking spaces will be required to install ducting to provide for the future installation of charge points in all parking spaces.
- New non-residential buildings (and those undergoing major renovation) with more than ten parking spaces will be required to install at least one charge point and ducting to provide for the future installation of charge points in at least one in every five parking spaces.
- From 2025, all non-residential buildings with more than twenty parking spaces will be required to install a minimum number of charge points.
In addition, my Department, in conjunction with the SEAI, is working on how best to support the provision of greater levels of on-street public charging.
