Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 16 December 2025
616. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his views regarding energy cloud; if he has considered including the use of surplus energy as part of the Government's social housing retrofit programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [72385/25]
View answerHelping address fuel poverty and improve thermal performance in the social homes remains a priority for my Department. Complementing local authorities' own funding, my Department provides funding through the Energy Efficiency Retrofit Programme (EERP) to assist local authorities upgrade their social housing stock.
Budget 2026 will provide a significantly increased budget of €140 million for the EERP next year, targeting a minimum 3,500 local authority homes for upgrade to a B2 Building Energy Rating (BER). This funding envelope represents an almost 56% increase on 2025.
Generally, funding is allocated under the EERP for those works that can support the optimal number of social homes in a given year to reach the minimum B2 rating. The range of eligible works and technologies is kept under review and is updated as part of the roll-out of each annual programme, as appropriate.
Ultimately, the specifications for installing additional devices for communicating with the smart grid are a matter for each home's electricity provider and the relevant local authority.
