Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent)
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66. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources his plans to introduce a domestic renewable heat incentive alongside the introduction of the industrial renewal heat incentive currently under consideration by his Department or if there are plans to introduce it in the future; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5804/17]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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The introduction of a Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) is a commitment in the Programme for Government and will be the primary support mechanism in the heating sector designed to meet Ireland’s renewable energy obligations.  The aim of the RHI is to build on the progress already made in the renewable heating sector and to help reach Ireland’s 12% target by 2020. In 2015, 6.5% of heat was derived from renewable sources in Ireland.

During 2016, my Department has undertaken a detailed economic assessment on the design and cost of the RHI for the industrial/commercial sector.  This assessment included a range of renewable energy technologies and focused on the approximately 3,000 large commercial and industrial heat users in the non-Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) in Ireland. The focus on the larger heat users was underpinned by analysis completed in 2014 which indicated that it would not be cost effective, at this stage, to include the domestic heating sector in the RHI.  This is due to a number of factors including the much higher support tariff per kilowatt hour of energy that would be required to incentivise households to change heating systems, as well as the significantly greater costs associated with administering the scheme for a large number of households in what is an unregulated sector.

The final public consultation document on the design and implementation of the new RHI scheme was published on www.dccae.gov.ieon the 26th of January 2017.  I encourage all interested parties to submit a response to this consultation. The information provided will help inform the final design of the new scheme. The current consultation will close on the 3rd of March, 2017.

Before any  RHI scheme is introduced, the overall costs and technologies to be supported will be subject to Government approval and State aid clearance from the European Commission.  It is expected that a new scheme will become available at the end of 2017.