Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 2 July 2026
331. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the breakdown of the funding that was provided to retrofitting of local authority homes; the average cost to retrofit a local authority home; and the average BER uplift in each of the years 2020 to 2026, in tabular form. [50354/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra332. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the breakdown of the funding that was allocated for solar PV in local authority homes in each of the years 2020 to 2026, in tabular form. [50355/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 331 and 332 together.
A more holistic approach was introduced to the Local Authority Energy Efficiency Retrofit Programme (EERP) in 2021, aligned with the Programme for Government target to retrofit 500,000 homes to a minimum BER B2 standard by 2030. Led by the Department of the Climate, Energy and the Environment, it is supported by my Department through the targeting of some 36,500 local authority social home retrofits over the period.
More than 11,000 social homes have been retrofitted under the EERP to date. With some €140 million allocated this year, supporting the retrofit of another 3,500 local authority social homes, and with growing appetite and capacity in the local authority, I am confident we can reach the target by end 2030.
An annualised breakdown of the units retrofitted and the funding drawn down from the years 2013-2025 is available on my Department's website at the following links:
www.gov.ie/en/publication/668c1-energy-efficiency-retrofitting-programme-expenditure-output/.
www.gov.ie/en/publication/b86b3-midlands-energy-retrofit-programme-expenditure-and-units/.
The programme provides up to €60,000 per dwelling (excluding project management fees). Local authorities have flexibility in selecting properties, ranging from those requiring minor upgrades to those needing more comprehensive works to achieve the target BER. While unit costs vary depending on the pre-works BER, authorities are expected to maintain an average cost of approximately €38,000 per home to maximise outputs. The average cost was approximately €34,000 in 2025.
Details of the pre-works BER ratings of dwellings that achieved the required post-works BER are set out in the table.
Eligible works under the EERP include insulation (attic, cavity, and external wall), window and door replacement, heat pump installation, and associated measures. Solar PV is generally not supported, as the core measures are sufficient to achieve the required BER.
However, in limited cases, specifically dwellings under 55m² where the required Heat Loss Indicator (HLI) cannot be achieved, an increased HLI threshold of 2.6 may be applied on a pilot basis. In these instances, installation of at least 1kWp of solar PV alongside a heat pump is recommended and funded. Between 2021 and 2025, funding was provided for 70 such solar PV installations as indicated in the table below.
|
Year |
Total PVs Funded |
|
2021 |
8 |
|
2022 |
22 |
|
2023 |
11 |
|
2024 |
1 |
|
2025 |
28 |
