Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 3 February 2022
223. Deputy Paul Kehoe asked the Minister for Transport if there is a process by which a person or employer can apply to have an electric car charging point installed in a public area or a workplace car park; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5649/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Deputy will be aware that the Government is fully committed to supporting a significant expansion and modernisation of the electric vehicle charging network over the coming years.
A national charging infrastucture strategy is due for publication in the coming months which will set out a pathway to stay ahead of demand over the critical period out to 2030. Preparations are also underway to establish an Office of Low Emission Vehicles. This Office will play an important role in our transition to zero emission vehicles including managing the delivery of EV charging infrastructure across the country.
Having an effective and reliable recharging network is essential to enabling drivers to choose electric. There are a number of incentives currently available to both private individuals, public sector organisations and businesses to support the installation of vehicle charging infrastructure. The national charging infrastructure strategy will review and, where appropriate, supplement and enhance these schemes, but I outline the incentives currently available below, for your information.
Charging at home is the most convenient and cheapest way to recharge. Targeting the installation of smart home chargers is a priority as we look to moving towards more energy efficient and sustainable ways to charge. A grant is available from the SEAI for those individuals seeking to install a home charger. Work is currently being progressed to expand the EV home charger grant to include shared parking in apartment blocks and similar developments. My Department is working closely with the SEAI and expects a scheme for apartments to open in the near future.
There is also a need for a seamless public charging network that will provide for situations or instances where home charging is not possible such as on-street and residential charging, destination charging, and workplace charging.
A report was published by the CCMA on the provision of guidance to local authorities on the provision of charging infrastructure. The document is available for viewing online at www.lgma.ie/en/publications/general-publications/local-authority-electrification-of-fleet-and-ev-charging-guidance.pdf
In terms of existing incentives for charging points, the Public Charge Point Scheme continues to be available during 2021 to provide local authorities with a grant of up to €5,000 to support the development of on-street public chargers. The primary focus of the scheme is to provide support for the installation of infrastructure which will facilitate owners of electric vehicles, who do not have access to a private parking space, but instead rely on parking their vehicles in public places near their homes to charge their EVs. My Department has committed to reviewing the Scheme later this year to ensure that it is as effective as possible in driving the decarbonisation effort.
€10 million was committed from the Climate Action Fund to support ESB investment in the charging network and this has leveraged a further €10 million investment from ESB, with the infrastructure to be in place by the end of 2022. This intervention alone will result in:
- 90 additional high power chargers, each capable of charging two vehicles
- 52 additional fast chargers, which may replace existing standard chargers
- 264 replacement standard chargers with more modern technology and with each consisting of two charge points
Further details on the progression of this project can be found at esb.ie/ecars/our-network/network-upgrades.
In addition, as part of the national charging infrastructure strategy, a destination charge point scheme is being developed by my Department which will provide funding for electric vehicle charging facilities at commonly accessed destinations. In this regard, I am minded to allow certain key publicly owned facilities at which members of the public access state services to apply for funding under this scheme to help provide another critical link in the overall network for public charging.
