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The scheme will help Ireland meet its CO2 reduction obligations

Ireland plans to insulate 500,000 homes until 2030

Ireland plans to insulate 500,000 homes until 2030

The National Retrofitting Scheme is aimed at helping homeowners, as well as addressing the recent high energy prices

Yesterday, the Irish government launched the National Retrofitting Scheme, an aid programme aimed at raising energy efficiency in homes across the republic. The scheme plans to provide financial aid to retrofit 500,000 homes and bring them to a B2 Building Energy Rating (BER) standard by 2030.

The programme will cost around 8 billion euros. This should help homeowners in undertaking energy improvements that will make housing warmer with lower costs.

The key measures and aims

The retrofitting scheme aims to build towards some ambitious goals. On the one hand, raising energy efficiency in homes will make them optimize their heating energy consumption and on the other, it would help Ireland cut down on CO2 emissions.

According to a government message, the programme could cover up to 50% of a typical deep retrofit to a B2 BER standard, up from the current 30 to 35%. Furthermore, there are significant increases in the number of free energy upgrades for those at risk of energy poverty.

There will also be an enhanced grant rate, covering up to 80% of the cost of roof and cavity wall insulation, due to the current exceptionally high energy prices.

Housing is always a hot topic in Ireland

The new programme comes on the heel of the Housing for All plan the government announced back in September of 2021. The Housing for All plan calls for the construction of 300,000 homes by 2030 as a way to alleviate the near-perpetual housing shortage in the country.

Furthermore, the recent energy price spike has caused considerable levels of energy poverty, as this winter might prove hard for many people in Ireland. Compounded by inflation, costs of living are on the rise and many families are forced to cut back on essential provisions.

These compounding issues have earned the new scheme some criticism from the opposition, mainly centred around the fact that by financing so much retrofitting work, the government will detract from its own housing construction plans. This will be the case as there will not be enough workers for all the public construction obligations. 

Furthermore, due to cost of living spikes, some representatives have expressed concerns that people will still be unable to afford the retrofitting of their homes.

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