Owners can apply for grants to cover up to half cost of deep retrofit for homes

The National Home Energy Upgrade Scheme signed off by the Cabinet aims to retrofit 500,000 homes by 2030.

Central heating (PA) (PA Archive)

Homeowners will be able to apply for grants to cover up to half of the cost to deep retrofit their homes under plans rubberstamped by the Government

The Cabinet signed off on plans for the home insulation scheme on Tuesday.

The National Home Energy Upgrade Scheme aims to retrofit 500,000 homes to B2 Building Energy Rating (BER) standard by 2030, representing almost a third of the country’s housing stock.

The scheme also has a target of installing 400,000 heat pumps.

Government officials have described it as one of the biggest and most challenging capital infrastructure projects in the state.

Under Government plans, householders can apply for grants of up to 25,000 euro to help pay towards increasing their home’s energy efficiency.

The scheme will cover almost half the cost – of around 45 to 51% – to complete a deep retrofit of a house to bring it to a B2 rating.

The Government hopes the package of supports will make it easier and more affordable for homeowners to upgrade their homes.

The measures are also aimed to address barriers to undertake energy upgrades.

The scheme is being delivered by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI).

Under the plans, 400 households at risk of energy poverty will be eligible for free energy upgrade.

Homeowners could save between 50 to 100 euro a month on energy bills.

There are also plans to create “one stop shops”, allow people to upgrade their homes all in one go, and provide an end-to-end service for homeowners.

Government officials say it is a simplified process for homeowners.

Other homeowners can opt to have individual measures carried out. In these cases, people pay the contractor the full amount for the works and claim the grant back from SEAI.

It is expected that the grants would be paid out a couple of weeks after the works are completed.

The Government said that low interest loans for bigger retrofitting projects will be unveiled later.

There are also grants of up to 80% for those who want minor works completed, including insulating attics.

The retrofit scheme is part of the Government plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

Taoiseach Micheal Martin said the package of measures will deliver “warmer, healthier and more comfortable homes”.

He also said it will reduce energy bills and emissions and improve air quality.

“The path ahead brings many opportunities. The truth is that increased energy efficiency delivers multiple benefits that will make for healthier and more comfortable homes and buildings,” he added.

“It will make us individually and collectively far less vulnerable to volatile energy prices and less dependent on imports from an increasingly unpredictable world.

“It will reduce the cost of living by cutting fuel bills at a time when many people are feeling the pressure of price increases.

“It will reduce our individual and collective reliance on fossil fuels that we know are so damaging to the environment. It will also create business opportunities and jobs here at home, spread across all parts of the country.

Environment Minister Eamon Ryan, Taoiseach Micheal Martin and Tanaiste Leo Varadkar (Niall Carson/PA) (PA Wire)

“By ring fencing and using carbon tax revenues to provide a secure revenue stream for years to come, we will help to develop an indigenous retrofitting industry with the scaling capacity needed to deliver.”

Tanaiste Leo Varadkar said he accepted that finding people to carry out the works will be a challenge.

There are concerns over the lack of skilled workers to deliver on the planned retrofits.

The Government has acknowledged there needs to be a rapid increase in the number of firms that can carry out the retrofits, as well as an increase in skilled workers, contractors and tradespeople.

“We have prepared for it. We’ve increased the number of places on our home energy upgrades upskilling and reskilling courses,” Mr Varadkar said.

“Currently the retrofit industry employs about 4,000 people today, we think it can employ 17,000 people by 2025.

“So that’s a net increase of employment of 13,000 in every town, village and county in Ireland.

“There’ll be good jobs all over the country.”

Minister for the Environment Eamon Ryan, who spearheaded the scheme, said that 1.5 million homes across the country need to change their heating system in the next three decades.

“We need to remove the oil and gas fired boilers to new heat pump systems that are a better technology,” Mr Ryan said.

“They’re a better way of heating our homes.

“At the same time we need to insulate that home so the cost comes down and you use very little electricity and you get the benefit of all the efficiencies that new system brings.

“It’s a better home as an outcome. It’s healthier, it’s cheaper to run. It’s lower emissions and helps us meet all our environmental targets. We have to do this.”

The individual measures will available via the SEAI website on Tuesday. Applications are expected to go live by the end of the week.