Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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137. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport he is aware of the lack of EV charging points in the Rosslare Europort and Rosslare Strand tourist area; the plans to address this obvious deficit in one of our main gateway ports and tourist areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40710/24]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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The Government is fully committed to supporting a significant expansion and modernisation of the EV charging network over the coming years. Having an effective and reliable charging network is an essential part of enabling drivers to make the switch to electric vehicles.

Home charging is and will remain the primary charging method for most Irish EV owners as it’s convenient and cheaper for the consumer. Home charging also assists in the overall management of the national grid by reducing the impact of reliance on higher powered and peak-time charging. Over 80% of charging is expected to happen at home, however for those unable to do so a growing network of neighbourhood and destination charging will provide a reliable alternative.

There are currently approximately 2400 publicly accessible charge points across Ireland, an increase from 1700 Charge points in September 2022.

These 2400 charge points are delivering approx. 70,000 KW of charge point capacity. In order to deliver on the EU's Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR) targets, this will need to increase to 214,000Kw by 2025 and 712,000KW by 2030. This is based on Light Duty Vehicles (LDVs) which consist of both LGVs and cars as a fleet and also based on Climate Action Plan targets of 195,000 EVs on Irish roads by 2025 and 30% of the private fleet by 2030.

The number of chargers required to meet this need will depend on the user needs identified through the Local Authority Charging Strategies and also the Private Market Roll out of EV infrastructure over this period.

It should be noted that the number of charge points per capita is not an accurate measure of addressing the public EV infrastructure need. The installation of the right chargers and the right location to meet user needs, while considering current and future demands, and tracking the EV transition is a more suitable model for delivery. While doing this the Government and local authorities will track the transition and align with National AFIR targets.

Local authorities will be funded by Zero Emission Vehicles Ireland (ZEVI) to develop the local and regional network plans. This process will identify the number of charge points required in each area, including on street chargers to serve residents without access to private off street parking. Some authorities have already completed these plans, while others are in progress. We anticipate that most of these plans will be finalised by 2025.

Local authorities are already working in cooperation on this matter under the National EV Charging Local and Regional plan.

County Wexford has been identified as part of Region 5 under the network plan and will be working with counties Kilkenny, Waterford, Carlow and regional lead Tipperary as well as with relevant support organisations and stakeholders to identify the charging needs for their region through the publication of a local charging strategy.

Region 5 has completed its initial scoping and is preparing to award a contract to engage additional support for the assessment of existing local charging networks and needs and to inform the overall scope of the strategy implementation.

ZEVI will continue to directly work with the local authority groups as they develop their strategies and will provide other supports and resources as necessary.