Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats)
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192. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the funding allocated to grants for the purchase of electric vehicles over the years 2018 to 2022, broken down by electric and hybrid; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10891/23]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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Electric vehicles (EVs) are the most prominent transport mitigation measure in the 2021 Climate Action Planand Ireland has set an ambitious target of 945,000 EVs on our roads by 2030. This target is challenging but indicates the scale of the transformation that is needed across all sectors if Ireland is to achieve its climate targets in the coming years.

As the Deputy will be aware, a suite of measures is available to EV drivers, including purchase grants for private car owners and taxi drivers, VRT relief, reduced tolls, home charger grants, favourable motor and BIK tax rates, as well as a comprehensive charging network. These measures have collectively contributed to increased take up of EVs in Ireland in recent years, to almost 77,000 at the end of January 2023.

ZEVI's grant schemes aim to encourage behavioural change and support the Government’s commitment to achieving a 51% reduction in transport emissions by 2030. The grant schemes are kept under continuous review to ensure that they are as effective as possible in driving the decarbonisation effort.

The funding allocated for EV purchase grants the years 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022 is as follows:

It should be noted that funding allocations are not broken down between battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). Grant funding for PHEVs was removed from 1st January 2022.

The total number of vehicles grant aided from 2018-2022 is outlined in the table below. BEV and PHEV breakdown is only available for 2021 and 2022.

The Electric Small Public Service Vehicle (eSPSV) Grant Scheme is in place to support the greening of the SPSV, or taxi, sector. It is aimed at improving air quality in urban areas, reducing the CO2 emissions of a sector which typically has very high mileage, and also can positively influence the uptake of zero emission passenger cars by improving general perception and awareness of the benefits of electric vehicles.

The SPSV industry is regarded as a champion in the normalisation of electric vehicle use. The Scheme is funded by the Department of Transport and administered by NTA acting as agents of the Department with delegated authority and as the licensing authority for SPSVs.

The funding allocated for the eSPSV grant scheme the years 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022 is as follows:

It should be noted that funding allocations are not broken down between battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs).

The total number of vehicles grant aided from 2018-2022 is outlined in the table below. BEV and PHEV breakdown is only available for 2021 and 2022.

Additionally, to promote the decarbonisation of the heavy-duty sector, and to assist road transport companies to transition from fossil fuels, my department launched the AFHDV Purchase Grant Scheme in 2021 to support the purchase of new large vans, trucks, buses and coaches. The Scheme is intended to help bridge the difference in purchase price between conventional heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs) and those powered by alternatively fuelled power-trains that offer environmental benefits over standard diesel vehicle technologies, and that would not otherwise have been bought.

The allocation for this scheme was €3m in 2021 and €3m in 2022.