Emer Higgins (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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165. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if he will report on his Department’s progress in delivering a low-cost loan guarantee scheme to encourage homeowners to undertake home energy upgrades under the national retrofitting and home energy upgrade programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8416/23]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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My Department is working with the Department of Finance, the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland, the Sustainable Energy Authority Ireland, the European Investment Bank and the European Investment Fund to develop a residential retrofit loan guarantee scheme. The scheme is also part of Ireland’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan and will be co-funded by the EU Recovery and Resilience Facility and Exchequer funding. It will also be backed by a counter guarantee provided by the EIB.

The loan guarantee will provide risk protection to retail credit institutions participating in the scheme. This will enable credit institutions to offer loans with reduced interest rates to private homeowners and non-corporate landlords and make comprehensive home energy efficiency upgrades more affordable to consumers. This approach will signal to the banking sector, new sustainable business opportunities associated with retrofit and the transition to a low carbon economy as well as increasing the volume of retrofit activity within the State. It is anticipated that the Scheme will provide a lending portfolio of up to €500 million.

Significant progress has been made to date, with two open calls for expressions of interest to participate in the scheme completed, and a number of banks and credit unions submitting formal expressions of interest to provide loans under the scheme. There has also been extensive due diligence between the EIB Group and the Irish banking and credit union sector. Intensive engagement to develop the scheme is ongoing and it is expected that the loan guarantee will be in place in the coming months.

Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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166. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment to examine the application for persons (details supplied) in relation to the length of time their application has been processing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8417/23]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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My Department funds a number of grant schemes to support homeowners to improve the energy efficiency of their properties. The administration and management of applications under the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) schemes are an operational matter for the SEAI. As Minister, I have no function with regard to individual grant applications.

The SEAI has established a specific email address for queries from Oireachtas members so that such queries can be addressed promptly, in line with SEAI’s objective to deliver services to the highest standards. The email address is oireachtas@seai.ie.

Should the homeowners have any further queries in relation to their application, SEAI can be contacted directly at email warmerhomes@seai.ie or by phone at 01-8082004.