Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 1 July 2025
194. Deputy John Clendennen asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment to advise on his Department’s position on both the use of HVO for fuel home heating systems and the Programme for Government commitment to “improve traceability in HVO procurement to ensure the product is from sustainable sources”; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36236/25]
View answerHVO is a bioliquid which can be used as a renewable energy and which, in a transport context, is classified as a biofuel. HVO is currently available for consumers to purchase for use for both transport and heating.
The Programme for Government commits to targeting older homes still using oil to switch to renewable heating systems and to consider the use of sustainable biofuels to reduce emissions from existing home boilers where deep retrofits are not possible in the short term. These commitments are framing the work underway to develop a Heat Policy Statement and the Roadmap to Phase Out Fossil Fuel heating systems.
As part of the Government Decision (S180/20/10/2704) adopting sectoral emissions ceilings, it was agreed to introduce a Renewable Heat Obligation (RHO) to ensure the increased use of renewable fuel types across the full heating sector, with the primary aim of supporting the achievement of Ireland's heating and cooling targets at EU level. Under current proposals, the RHO will obligate suppliers of all fossil fuels used for heating purposes to ensure a proportion of the energy they supply is renewable. As such, all renewable fuels, including bioliquids used for heat that satisfy the sustainability criteria of the Renewable Energy Directive, will be considered eligible for certification under the scheme.
An Expert Group on Renewable and Low Carbon Fuels has been set up by the Directorate-General for Energy in the EU Commission to create a Union Database to monitor and trace the raw materials used for low carbon fuel production. Representatives from my Department and the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland participate in the Group.
