Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 10 April 2025
6. Deputy Aindrias Moynihan asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the measures he is taking to achieve the 500,000-home target by 2030 under the home energy upgrade programme; the reasons identified by him as to the levelling-out of uptake under the scheme; the measures to be taken on the issues identified; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17992/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraTá spriocanna dúshlánacha leagtha amach chun athchóiriú a dhéanamh ar thithe cónaithe agus iad sin a bheith ullamh faoi 2030. An mbeimid ábalta na spriocanna sin a bhaint amach nó an bhfuil aon bhac ann gur féidir a chur ar leataobh?
There are ambitious targets set out for more than 500,000 homes to have been renovated by 2030. Is that on target? Has the Department identified any obstacles that need to be removed to reach it?
Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta as ucht na ceiste a ardú ar an ábhar an-tábhachtach seo. I thank the Deputy for his question on this very important subject. As he knows, Ireland has one of the most ambitious home retrofit targets in the world. The national retrofit plan sets out how these targets will be met, including with an €8 billion financial allocation in the period to 2030. I met my British counterpart, Ed Miliband, recently in Liverpool. The British Government is struck by how advanced our retrofit programme is and by the funding we have put behind it in comparison with its own. Across Europe and in comparison with our nearest neighbour, the commitment we have to home retrofits is second to none.
A range of measures has been introduced under the retrofit plan in recent years to support the achievement of the targets, such as enhanced SEAI grant schemes with simplified application processes and faster approvals, including a greater focus on heat pumps. As I have discussed with the Deputy, I am having another look at those grants. It is appropriate that I do so to see how to make them even more accessible and that I look at the structure of the grants and, in certain areas, the grant amounts to help us continue on this journey. Last year, the Government, through the SEAI, supported 54,000 home energy upgrades, an increase of 13% on the previous year. This year, a record budget of €550 million of Exchequer funding has been allocated to the SEAI, which will support more than 64,500 home energy upgrades and build on the momentum seen in recent years. I have met representatives of the SEAI on three occasions, since I came in as Minister, to look at the grant schemes. I charged them with coming to me with an options paper, which I have just received. I will go through that in detail and meet them again in early May. The grant schemes are very good. They are having an impact, and I want to see if we can improve them further.
I thank the Minister. I will focus first on lower income households, where the free home energy upgrades, under the warmer homes scheme, would be expected to deliver. This time last year, it was taking eight to ten months to reach stage one, the BER assessment, and 26 months to get the overall works done under the scheme. By the middle of last year, it had slipped to ten to 12 months to get the BER assessment. We would expect that multiple BER assessors contractors would be available around the country to support a slipping target. In my office, I am dealing with people who have been waiting up to 15 months with no contact for a BER assessment. Are the SEAI times correct? Is there something particular in Cork that is causing such delays? Will the SEAI, even if it needs to take on additional contractors, advance that aspect of the grant?
The warmer homes scheme is important because it focuses on lower incomes families. I am looking at this issue. For context, the average value of upgrades in 2015 was just €2,600. In 2024, the most recent year for which I have full annualised data, it was €27,700. Deeper upgrades mean more lower income homeowners can benefit to a greater extent from the scheme and the upgrades can tackle energy poverty by reducing their bills. Having said that, we need to look again at how we report those waiting times, particularly for the initial assessment. I am looking at this matter and have asked officials to look at it as well. There is a lead time to get a BER cert before an applicant can even get into the process. The waiting times are calculated from the very beginning of the application process to the completion of the works, whereas for the croí conaithe grant scheme, it is based on the application having come through the local authority and been processed and completed. I cannot control how long it takes a contractor to get out there. What we can do relates to the assessment, and I am looking at options in that regard. Private assessors and all of those types of things are on the table.
For people who do not qualify for the free schemes, there is a range of grants and loans. Depending on the age of the building and the size, quite a substantial job can be required. It could be anywhere from €20,000 to €70,000 to carry out a deep retrofit. While there is a grant, it is a big expense, with people even having to borrow, and there is a long payback. The time, the cost and possibly having to relocate home, borrow or find alternative accommodation while the work is being undertaken are a further challenge.
For many people, the sums just do not add up. Is it possible to increase the level of grant? In Denmark, the loan interest rate is closer to 1%, which would make it more accessible for people. So many people are just not going to be able to conduct the works.
Affordability is critical. If we look at it from a positive standpoint first, about 162,000 homes have been supported for energy upgrades and 55,000 of those are B2 upgrades. We have to look at B2 or B2 equivalents and where the house is going. To improve the energy and heating in a home, particularly in older homes, the cost of getting to B2 can be substantial, if not prohibitive. That is why the loan scheme, which was launched last year, the home energy upgrade loan scheme, has been extended to seven credit union groups and there are two new lenders of that money, namely, An Post and Permanent TSB, as well as Bank of Ireland and AIB. Applicants can get a long-term loan of up to €75,000 at an average rate of 3%. That is a very keen rate, and while it is not as keen as the rate in Denmark that Deputy Moynihan mentioned, some loans are actually below 3% and there will be a lot of competition in the sector. With the grant that is available, which is substantial, the low-interest loan and the payback for the homeowner through reduced energy bills and more efficiency, it is a very good proposition. I want to improve it further and I am assessing that right now.
