Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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205. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the number of applications for home retrofit loans, broken down by county in each of the quarter since the schemes inception. [41399/26]

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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206. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the number of home retrofit loans granted in each of the quarters since the schemes inception, broken down by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41408/26]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal East, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 205 and 206 together.

The Home Energy Upgrade Loan Scheme (HEULS), which launched in April 2024, is intended to play a crucial role in helping homeowners invest in energy upgrades to make their homes warmer, healthier and more comfortable, with lower emissions and lower bills. It was developed by my Department, in conjunction with the Department of Finance, the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI), the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) and the European Investment Bank Group.

The scheme is available nationwide and homeowners can borrow from €5,000 to €75,000 on an unsecured basis for a term of up to 10 years at significantly lower interest rates to those currently on the market. Rates start from as low as 2.99% with price varying depending on the finance provider. PTSB was the first lender to join in April 2024, with AIB and Bank of Ireland joining in June 2024. In 2025, the group of participating lenders was expanded to include Avant Money (in partnership with An Post) and seven credit unions from the Irish League of Credit Unions.

Loan applications are processed, validated and approved by the participating finance providers. Only loans that have been drawn down under the scheme are uploaded by the finance providers to the SBCI's reporting system.

At the end of Q1 2026, there were 1,135 loans drawn to a value of €56,071,897 since the scheme launched. The SBCI provide a regional breakdown of loan uptake on a quarterly basis. The Deputy may wish to note that as uptake figures in certain counties mean that it could be possible to identify individual homeowners, these figures have not been disclosed. Instead, cumulative uptake figures by region are provided in table 1 attached.

In line with the Programme for Government’s commitment to “Promote the €500 million Home Energy Upgrade Loan Scheme, offering low interest loans for home energy upgrades, from €5,000 to €75,000”, my Department continues to work closely with the SBCI, the SEAI and the participating finance providers to increase awareness of, and demand for, the scheme and drive additional uptake in 2026 and beyond.

The Deputy may wish to note that further information and quarterly reports related to the HEULS are available here: .