Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 17 June 2025
169. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment if the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland plans to offer a replacement scrappage deal on gas boilers that are aged over 15 years old for domestic residential properties only. [32338/25]
View answerMy Department funds a number of schemes administered by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) to support homeowners to improve the energy efficiency of their dwellings. Individual energy upgrade grants are available under the Better Energy Homes Scheme; the National Home Energy Upgrade Scheme, which provides an end-to-end service through One Stop Shops; and the Community Energy Grant Scheme, which supports energy efficiency upgrades undertaken as part of a community project. There are also fully funded upgrades for qualifying households.
The SEAI residential and community retrofit programmes are available to households, including those reliant on fossil fuel boilers for heating, who wish to undertake energy upgrades and who meet the programme criteria.
Grant supports under the part-funded schemes are available for installing heat pumps in place of fossil fuel heating systems and, in recent years, a range of measures have been put in place to incentivise take-up among homeowners, including:
• enhanced grant rates of up to €10,500 for heat pumps when a B2 energy rating is achieved;
• amending the construction rule for grant support for heat pumps to include homes built and occupied before 2021;
• changes to the SEAI scheme rules to make the process of accessing heat pump grants easier for homeowners;
• a reduction in the VAT rate to 9% that applies to heat pumps; and
• measures to expand the supply chain.
In keeping with the commitments in the Programme for Government to further support homeowners, including those in older homes, to adopt renewable heating systems, work is ongoing in my Department and the SEAI to improve the accessibility and uptake of grants taking account of ongoing pilots like the Traditional Homes Pilot and the Warmer Homes Heat Pump Pilot.
In line with the requirements of the EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, and its overarching policy objective to reduce carbon emissions and reduce reliance on fossil-fuels, there are no plans to introduce a like-for-like replacement scrappage deal on gas boilers under the SEAI residential energy upgrade schemes.
