Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta for his question. My Department funds a number of grant schemes administered by the SEAI for solar PV and heat pump installation as part of the national retrofit plan. To the end of September 2025, over 41,500 home energy upgrades had been completed with SEAI grant support. That compares with 38,000 in the same period in 2024, 34,000 in 2023, 16,062 in 2022, 9,938 in 2021 and 12,573 in 2020. That represents 10% growth on last year and 22% on 2023, showing strong momentum.

I acknowledge that the approval and completion timelines remain a challenge. We are particularly focused on deep retrofits and the warmer homes scheme. Average wait times, as acknowledged earlier in the House, remain high because the works are complex and demand is strong. We will continue to invest in skilled workers, more contractors and streamlined processes. We are also taking action including simplification of the application process. We are expanding the one-stop shop, which now comprises over 26 contractors, the home energy improvement loan, with rates of 2.99%, and building capacity, which must grow to meet current demand.

Budget 2026 also provided €558 million, an 89% increase, that will be supplemented with ERDF funding. On the specific data in regard to ramping up delivery, we hope by 2030 that targets of over 500,000 B2 retrofits and over 400,000 heat pumps will be delivered.

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