Mr. Declan Meally:

I thank the committee for the invitation to attend the meeting today to discuss carbon and energy, and particularly embodied energy, within the construction industry. I am joined today by my colleague Ms Orla Coyle, programme manager, public sector and regulatory programmes. I thank the committee for giving me the opportunity to make my opening statement.

The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland is at the forefront of delivering a low carbon economy through measures and activities focussed on the transition to a smarter and more sustainable energy future. The SEAI is funded by the Government of Ireland, through its parent Department, the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, and the Department of Transport. In 2022 our budget allocation is more than €440 million.

The SEAI puts citizens, communities, suppliers, and other stakeholders at the heart of everything it delivers. We focus on developing collaborative partnerships, strong engagement, and smooth customer journeys for the public we serve. At the SEAI, we are acutely aware that the energy transition must be a just transition. This is carefully considered across our programmes of delivery, our research, and our policy advice.

We provide expert advice to drive positive change through our analysis, modelling and support for policymaking. We are catalysts for action through grant and incentive programmes we deliver and through our capacity-building processes with citizens, communities and the business and public sectors. Pursuing our mission, we collaborate closely with a wide range of stakeholders, including Departments, State agencies, and the private sector. We have had a major and transformative impact on the Irish economy. In the past decade, our actions have underpinned more than €1.2 billion in energy savings.

Ireland now has even more ambitious targets and we have been scaling up our operations to meet the challenge. The SEAI is at the heart of delivering the Government’s Climate Action Plan 2021. The plan sets ambitious goals for the built environment to 2030, including: the installation of 600,000 heat pumps; 500,000 B2 home upgrades; large emission reductions in our public services and enterprise sectors; and increased investment in research and innovation.

In terms of carbon budgets, every sector will have its own targets to achieve and will be held to account for allocations which are being defined in 2022. Buildings contribute to 36% of energy-related greenhouse gas emissions in Europe, with the European Commission targeting that our building stock be zero emissions by 2050. This target is the subject of European policy directives currently under stakeholder consultation. The SEAI is working with our colleagues in the Departments of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the Environment, Climate, and Communications in preparation for the changes to the energy performance of buildings and energy efficiency directives.

These will include the following high-level requirements. All new buildings are to be zero emission from 2027 for public buildings and 2030 for all others. The whole life cycle greenhouse gas emissions will be calculated for all new, large buildings greater than 2, 000 sq. m from 2027 and all other buildings from 2030. Minimum energy standards will be required on all buildings.

There is a requirement for whole lifecycle carbon assessments of buildings as part of green public procurement, and inclusion of lifecycle global warming potential resulting from construction for sustainable financing for buildings greater than 5000 sq. m.

We welcome the ambition emerging in these directives. As highlighted through national and international research, as we reduce our operational carbon in our new building and the retrofit of existing building stock, the influence of carbon from materials increases over time. SEAI has recently commissioned a research study investigating lifecycle carbon impact of new and renovated buildings. It is hoped that some of the outputs of this research, including the development of lifecycle assessment methodologies and tools, will assist those in the construction industry. In addition, SEAI has been tasked with the development of a standard calculation methodology under the climate action plan. SEAI considers that there is also a significant role for green public procurement to assist in the task of reducing embodied carbon. The public sector can play a role, setting an example, requesting lower embodied carbon solutions in any buildings and services procured in the future.

The way in which we live must change, but it will be a change for the better. This change will mean our buildings will be warm, comfortable and not heated by oil or gas; our communities will be leading the generation of renewable energy; and our transport fleet will be electrified, charged by a renewable energy powered electricity system. Sustainable energy needs to be the norm. The quicker we achieve this, the sooner the broad range of benefits will flow to Irish citizens and businesses in the form of cheaper-to-run, warmer and healthier buildings, improved air quality, increased competitiveness, improved security of energy supply and many others.

The benefits of the sustainable energy transition far outweigh the costs, particularly when the multiple benefits, namely, financial, economic, employment, health, security of supply and environmental, are considered. We passionately believe the clean energy transition must happen urgently and we stand ready to support all of Irish society on this journey. Our approach is based on insights, research and expertise from two decades of programme delivery. The challenges ahead require us to work at pace and to deliver even greater results, learning and improvements in collaboration with key stakeholders.

In concluding, I thank our colleagues in the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications and the Department of Transport for their ongoing support, particularly in the context of the actions assigned to SEAI under the Climate Action Plan 2021 and the national development plan. I also thank the officials in the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage for their continued support to SEAI. I welcome discussion with the committee and I am happy to answer any questions that members may wish to raise.