Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 20 May 2026
118. Deputy John Paul O'Shea asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the number of SMEs who have availed of the Energy Efficiency Grant by County and by sector in each of the years 2023 to 2025 and to-date in 2026, in tabular form; if there are any plans to amend the scheme to increase the level of grant aid or make it easier for SMEs to access given the rising cost of energy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38334/26]
View answerThe Energy Efficiency Grant (EEG) was first introduced in 2023 with the aim of assisting small businesses to implement the recommendations of a Green for Business scheme and better manage their energy usage and long term costs. The grant initially offered up to €5,000 with a 50% contribution to the cost by the Small Business availing of the support.
In June 2024, in recognition of the increasing energy costs for small businesses, my Department doubled the maximum payment to up to €10,000 and reduced the contribution required of the businesses to 25%.
A full review of LEO schemes, including the Energy Efficiency Grant is underway. Consideration of any future adjustments to the EEG or other schemes will follow this review.
It should be noted that last year the Small Business Unit within my Department, in conjunction with Enterprise Ireland, conducted a full review of the application requirements for each of the different LEO grants. This resulted in significant reduction in the number of questions and simplification across multiple grant schemes - including an 11% reduction in the application requirements for the EEG.
Since its introduction in 2023 the Local Enterprise Offices have approved grant funding of €10.5m to 1,340 small businesses under the EEG. The number of approvals in each year since its introduction and the year to date are set out in the table below.
No. of EEG grant approvals:
|
LEO |
2023 |
2024 |
2025 |
2026* |
|
Carlow |
5 |
10 |
30 |
13 |
|
Cavan |
0 |
10 |
22 |
7 |
|
Clare |
1 |
10 |
25 |
16 |
|
Cork |
3 |
28 |
109 |
37 |
|
Donegal |
1 |
17 |
31 |
13 |
|
Dublin |
2 |
19 |
49 |
25 |
|
Galway |
1 |
12 |
50 |
6 |
|
Kerry |
2 |
11 |
23 |
26 |
|
Kildare |
0 |
20 |
21 |
7 |
|
Kilkenny |
1 |
7 |
27 |
13 |
|
Laois |
3 |
9 |
11 |
7 |
|
Leitrim |
2 |
5 |
15 |
2 |
|
Limerick |
1 |
8 |
22 |
14 |
|
Longford |
0 |
8 |
28 |
5 |
|
Louth |
0 |
2 |
10 |
7 |
|
Mayo |
1 |
15 |
40 |
9 |
|
Meath |
1 |
12 |
27 |
2 |
|
Monaghan |
5 |
11 |
25 |
12 |
|
Offaly |
1 |
17 |
22 |
7 |
|
Roscommon |
2 |
11 |
15 |
6 |
|
Sligo |
0 |
5 |
20 |
11 |
|
Tipperary |
0 |
12 |
21 |
19 |
|
Waterford |
1 |
3 |
17 |
7 |
|
Westmeath |
2 |
14 |
29 |
13 |
|
Wexford |
0 |
9 |
17 |
8 |
|
Wicklow |
0 |
4 |
9 |
9 |
|
Total |
35 |
289 |
715 |
301 |
*Please note 2026 figures are preliminary
Due to current data collection limitations, it is not possible to extract detailed information on grant approvals by specific sectors. However, as part of its quarterly reporting, Enterprise Ireland compile statistics which provide a broad indication of the sectoral spread of EEG approvals.
Q1 2026 EEG Sectoral Spread
|
Sector |
Approximate % of EEG Approvals |
|
Food & Beverage eg. Cafes, bakeries, coffee roasters, takeaways. |
41% |
|
Hospitality & Leisure eg. Pubs, hotels, campsites, golf clubs. |
10% |
|
Retail eg. Hardware shops, pharmacies, furniture shops, bookshops. |
9% |
|
Services eg. Childcare services, Laundrettes, training and education providers, accountants. |
37% |
|
Manufacturing & Industrial eg. Production and manufacturing of goods, engineering, carpentry manufacturers, construction businesses. |
3% |
