Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 April 2026
343. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment for an update on when Ireland’s Social Climate Plan will be submitted to the European Commission; if the Plan will be operational by 2026; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28135/26]
View answerMy Department is continuing to prepare Ireland's Social Climate Plan ("the Plan") in close consultation with the European Commission and relevant Departmental stakeholders.
In line with the requirements of the regulation, a public event on the draft Plan, co-hosted by my Department and the European Commission, will be held later this year. At this event, information will be shared on the contents of the draft Plan as well as detail on how the consultation process completed last year fed into the design of the draft. Following the event, a final draft Plan will be submitted to Government for approval. It will then be submitted to the European Commission for final approval.
To facilitate this level of engagement, the Plan will be submitted to the Commission, for approval, in the second half of this year. The Plan will begin operation in 2027 after the Plan has been submitted and approved by the European Commission. According to written guidance issued by the European Commission, a delayed submission will not lessen Ireland’s ability to drawdown its full allocation from the Social Climate Fund over the lifetime of the Plan.
344. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the estimated reduction in funding available to the Climate Action Fund due to the recent reduction in the NORA levy, if plans have been made to bridge this shortfall; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28136/26]
View answerThe Climate Action Fund was established in legislation by the National Oil Reserves Agency (Amendment) and Provision of Central Treasury Services Act 2020. This legislation provides that the Climate Action Fund may be funded, at my direction, by the income to the Agency from the NORA levy in a given financial year, after the Agency’s expenses have been met. As a result of the timeline this imposes, the amount available to the Climate Action Fund from NORA is only finally determined close to the end of the year, after levy incomes have been collected by the Agency.
As part of recent measures taken by Government to address the affordability of fuel in response to recent events, the NORA levy has been temporarily reduced for a four-month period. In previous years, the NORA Levy averaged over €120 million a year. Therefore, this reduction in the NORA levy is estimated to result in a reduction of levy income to NORA of c.€40m. While this reduction in levy income is likely to cause an equivalent reduction the funds available for transfer to the Climate Action Fund, the exact impact on the income to the fund will only be known conclusively at the end of the year when the Agency can provide details on the amounts collected through the levy at that time.
The Climate Action Fund currently has sufficient funding to meet its outstanding commitments. Consequently, there has been no shortfall in funding to approved projects as a result of the reduction in the NORA levy. As has always been the case, the allocation of funding from the Climate Action Fund to potential future projects will be considered with regard to the Fund's estimated future income.
345. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment whether data centres, which account for an estimated 25% of national electricity demand, are designated to receive fuel from the State’s strategic reserves in the event of a national fuel crisis or emergency; the criteria used to determine such prioritisation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28210/26]
View answerThe National Oil Reserves Agency (NORA) has operational responsibility for the day-to-day management of the State’s Strategic Oil Reserve. NORA stores petrol, diesel and kerosene, and does not maintain physical stocks of biofuels, fuel oil or crude oil. NORA’s oil is stored in various port locations throughout the island of Ireland, with the balance held in a small number of EU Member States. The locations at which NORA’s oil is stored are monitored under tight security in accordance with normal industry standards.
It is important to note that Data Centres are primarily powered by electricity. In the event of an electricity outage, I am advised that data centres have a range of backup supplies, including batteries and thermal generators powered by diesel or HVO.
346. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the amount of fuel that is currently held in the State’s strategic reserves; the equivalent duration in months of national demand that this represents; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28211/26]
View answerThe National Oil Reserves Agency (NORA) has operational responsibility for the day-to-day management of the State’s Strategic Oil Reserve . NORA stores petrol, diesel and kerosene, and does not maintain physical stocks of biofuels, fuel oil or crude oil. NORA’s oil is stored in various port locations throughout the island of Ireland, with the balance held in a small number of EU Member States. The locations at which NORA’s oil is stored are monitored under tight security in accordance with normal industry standards.
As the Deputy may be aware, member countries of the IEA have agreed to initiate an action to release Strategic Oil Reserves to address the supply issues that are emerging on foot of the conflict in the Middle East. Ireland's contribution to an IEA 400-million-barrel release is approximately 1.6 million barrels. That level of contribution equates to approximately 10.5 days of supply - that process has been commenced by NORA.
As at close of business on 21 April 2026, NORA is holding 85.2 days of stock.
347. Deputy Eamon Scanlon asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment with regard to building regulations generally, the plans the Government has to promote the use of a higher proportion of construction materials, such as windows and doors, manufactured from recycled content; whether, beyond the existing mandatory 15% requirement, there are plans to introduce incentives or rewards for the use of products containing higher levels of recycled materials in public contracts; if not, the reason; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28435/26]
View answerConstruction and demolition waste is the largest waste stream in Ireland in terms of volume and weight. I am advised that the sector generated an estimated 9 million tonnes of waste in 2023, up from 8.3 million tonnes in 2022, which is half of all the waste generated in Ireland.
A more circular built environment shifts the value chain from a linear model to a closed-loop system in which resources and materials are continually reused and repurposed. The goal is to adopt efficient design and prioritise better use of existing building stock, minimise waste, optimise resources and lower costs through material recovery, and reducing reliance on virgin materials.
To help accomplish this, I recently published Ireland’s second Whole of Government Circular Economy Strategy which aims to foster innovation, competitiveness and job creation by positioning Ireland as a European leader in circular business models and green technologies.
As committed to in the Strategy, the Department will be publishing a Circularity Roadmap for the Construction Sector which will provide a basis for circular construction considering all life phases of a project from planning to disposal. The roadmap will promote long service life, modular construction, reuse, recycling and using sustainable materials and recycled materials. Engagement with the construction sector has been, and will be, central to agreeing the roadmap’s actions and targets.
The focus will be to promote a long service life, flexibility of use, modular construction, separability, reuse of components, ability to recycle the construction materials used and the use of the highest possible share of sustainable construction materials and recycled materials.
348. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment if his Department are considering introducing a disposable cup levy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28501/26]
View answerI refer the Deputy to the reply to Question numbered 245 of 24 February 2026 which states:
Legislative powers are in place, through the Circular Economy Act 2022, to implement environmental levies on a range of singe-use products including single-use cups, single-use containers and other forms of single-use packaging.
In 2022, the Department commissioned a Regulatory Impact Analysis (RIA) on the introduction of a levy on single-use cups and a public consultation on draft regulations was undertaken. It was envisaged at the time that a levy might be introduced in a similar way to the plastic bag levy (i.e. at the point of sale in a retail premises).
Following further engagement with the Revenue Commissioners, a different collection model, collecting the levy when cups are first placed on the market by producers or importers, was discussed. Such a revision would require an amendment of the Circular Economy and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2022. The Department is working with the Revenue Commissioners on designing the provisions required to make this amendment.
Furthermore, in 2025, the Department commissioned an update to the RIA to explore the potential impacts of the revised collection model and any other policy measure to reduce single-use cup consumption effectively. That work is close to finalisation and will inform next policy steps.
Any future regulations will first be subject to a public consultation, and will include an SME test.
The position remains unchanged.
349. Deputy Paula Butterly asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the status of the development of the offshore wind energy marine planning guidelines being prepared under section 7 of the Maritime Area Planning Act 2021 (as amended); the expected timeline for publication the extent of stakeholder engagement undertaken to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28553/26]
View answerWork has commenced in the Department on Marine Planning Guidelines for Offshore Renewable Energy. It is intended that these guidelines will provide clarity and advice on the assessment process for planning applications for offshore renewable energy. However, putting a spatial planning policy in place is the first step in providing a comprehensive planning framework for offshore renewable energy.
Accordingly, in 2025, I published a Proposal for a National Designated Maritime Area Plan (DMAP) for Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) which is due to be completed in 2027. This DMAP will provide a spatial planning policy framework for ORE, including spatial designations. It is my intention that public consultation on the Marine Planning Guidelines for Offshore Renewable Energy will take place following publication of the National DMAP for ORE.
350. Deputy John Paul O'Shea asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the progress made on each of the individual Programme for Government commitments assigned to his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28652/26]
View answerThe attached table sets out the progress made on key Programme for Government (PfG) commitments under the remit of my Department, since the last update I provided as part of Question Number 35 of 2 December 2025.
The key PfG commitments are grouped, as appropriate, to the relevant goals from the Department’s Statement of Strategy, Le Chéile 28, which was published in September 2025. These strategic goals are strongly aligned to the key commitments in the Programme for Government 2025.
Significant progress has been made against key Programme for Government commitments under the remit of my Department in 2025, and the Department will continue its critical work to ensure the future successful delivery of commitments. The progress made by my Department in delivering on the Statement of Strategy, including the implementation of key Programme for Government commitments, is also captured in the Department's Annual Reports which are available on www.gov.ie.?
351. Deputy Jen Cummins asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment to outline all grants available to retrofit homes to become more energy efficient. [28715/26]
View answerThe Programme for Government commits to taking decisive action to provide warmer, more comfortable homes, supporting energy affordability, security and sustainability. It commits to making our homes more sustainable and energy-efficient, reducing reliance on fossil fuels, and lowering energy costs for households.
By promoting retrofitting, renewable heating, and solar energy, homes will become warmer, cheaper to heat, and less reliant on fossil fuels.
In the period 2019 to date, the Sustainable Energy Authority (SEAI) schemes have provided almost €1.7 billion in support to homeowners providing over 257,500 home energy improvements, including 32,752 fully funded upgrades for households at risk of energy poverty under the Warmer Homes Scheme, and almost 20,000 heat pump installations.
The allocation for 2026, a record capital budget of over €640 million for the SEAI residential and community energy upgrade schemes including the Solar PV Scheme, will support over 73,203 home energy upgrades.
The SEAI grants available for home energy upgrades are as follows:
• Better Energy Homes and Solar PV - Individual Energy Upgrade Grants: Homeowners or private landlords apply for the grants, select energy upgrade measures, manage the project, and pay for the full costs of works and claim the grant afterwards. The measures supported include attic and wall insulation, heating system upgrades and renewable energy technologies.
• National Home Energy Upgrade Scheme (One Stop Shop): A fully project managed service that provides grant support to private homeowners and Approved Housing Bodies that want to upgrade their homes to a BER B2 or better. The service is delivered by registered One Stop Shops that assess the home, provide advice to the homeowner on suitable options, apply for the grant, carry out the works and then claim the grant from the SEAI. The value of the grant is discounted upfront from the cost to the homeowner.
• Warmer Homes Scheme: A fully funded and managed solution for qualifying homeowners in receipt of certain social welfare benefits to upgrade their home with measures identified from a home energy survey. SEAI manage the whole process from home survey, through contractor works, and a follow-up BER.
• Solar PV for the Medically Vulnerable Scheme: Fully-funded scheme providing for the installation of solar PV panels for medically vulnerable customers. This is a supplier-led targeted scheme for the installation of solar PV panels for customers/households registered on the life support category of the Priority Services Register.
• The Communities Energy?Grant?Scheme:? This scheme supports cross-sectoral and community-oriented partnership approaches that deliver energy savings to a range of building types including public, commercial and community buildings with a particular focus on using the projects to deliver home retrofits.
In addition, the Home Energy Upgrade Loan Scheme was launched in April 2024. This is a key initiative to help reduce the financial challenges for many homeowners looking to invest in energy efficiency, making their homes warmer, cheaper to run and helping to lower emissions. This €500 million scheme is the first of its kind for both Ireland and the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group. Under the scheme, homeowners can borrow from €5,000 to €75,000 on an unsecured basis for a term of up to 10 years with interest rates significantly lower than those currently available on the market.
Further information on all SEAI grant schemes can be found on the SEAI website at: [Energy Efficient Homes - Home Energy Upgrades And Grants | SEAI]
Following Government approval in January, I published the new National Residential Retrofit Plan with an enhanced set of measures to increase the delivery of home energy upgrades and help put homeowners on the pathway to decarbonising their homes. In the first quarter of the year, since the introduction of these new measures, the SEAI data shows a very positive upward trend with clear evidence of growth in both demand and output.
These new measures are making energy upgrades more affordable, and accessible to many more homeowners, with new and revised individual upgrades to support homeowners with their upgrade journey.
352. Deputy Jen Cummins asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the current average wait time for people who apply for retrofitting grants to get approval. [28716/26]
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 properties. 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;
the Community Energy Grant scheme that supports energy efficiency upgrades undertaken as part of a community project; and
the Warmer Homes Scheme which provides fully-funded upgrades for homeowners in receipt of certain Department of Social Protection income supports.
The information sought regarding the average wait time for retrofitting grants to get approval is an operational matter for the SEAI. The SEAI has established a specific email address for queries from Oireachtas members so that such queries can be addressed promptly and in line with the SEAI’s objective to deliver services to the highest standards. The email address is oireachtas@seai.ie
