Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 July 2020
92. Deputy Francis Noel Duffy asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the details of the national retrofit plan; if he will examine rerunning the pilot scheme that was cancelled in 2019; the details of future undertakings of the pilot scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16828/20]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Programme for Government and the Climate Action Plan set ambitious targets for the number and depth of residential retrofits to be completed by 2030. The targets are to retrofit 500,000 homes to a Building Energy Rating of B2/cost optimal equivalent and to install 400,000 heat pumps in existing buildings over the next 10 years. Retrofitting has the ability to contribute to a number of important goals including - decarbonisation; warmer, more comfortable homes; and job creation and retention.
A cross-Departmental Retrofit Taskforce has been established to develop a new retrofit delivery model capable of achieving these targets. This process has been informed by experience from existing schemes in Ireland such as the Deep Retrofit Pilot Scheme referred to by the Deputy, consultation with stakeholders and an analysis of relevant international experience. The model is designed to address barriers to energy efficiency investments in four key areas: customer proposition and demand generation, financing and affordability, supplier capacity, and delivery structure. The Climate Action Plan, as part of this process, commits to reviewing and redesigning the existing grant schemes to ensure alignment with Government climate objectives and value for money.
The Retrofit Taskforce report, to be published in Q3 2020, will inform the future design of retrofit schemes to deliver the ambitious targets as set out in the Programme for Government.
