Increase in homes adding solar PV panels after Vat cut
In Solar The Pv The Seai A Rate After Reported Panels The Number Huge Increase Adding Of Was Homes Cut Vat
More than 21,700 retrofits of one form or the other were completed in the second quarter of this year.
However, only 7,566 homes were completed to a "BER B2 or higher" energy rating, just over a third of the total amount.
According to the the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), the organisation that oversees the implementation of the national retrofit programme, some 21,727 property upgrades were carried out, a 150% increase the same period last year.
In Cork, 2,668 homes were retrofitted, while only 950 properties were upgraded in Limerick, 882 in Kerry, 778 in Tipperary, and 252 in Waterford.
The SEAI said that there has been a significant rise in Solar PV property upgrades, up by 231% over last year following the Government's move to cut Vat on solar panels.
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Some 500,000 B2 Building Energy Rating (BER) home upgrades are targeted by 2030.
These rates were first introduced as a compulsory measure 14 years ago as a way to measure energy efficiency in homes.
Half of the €8bn allocated for retrofitting is ringfenced for vulnerable and energy-poor households.
The organisation says that over 2,300 property upgrades were completed through programmes focused on homes at risk of fuel poverty — which was up 20% on the same period last year.
The SEAI said that the retrofitting target overall for 2023 is to support over 37,000 home energy upgrades.
It counts a retrofit as a single application for a property on any of its residential retrofit programmes in its overall numbers.
The SEAI said there is a "strong pipeline of demand for the rest of the year."
Director of National Retrofit at the SEAI, Dr Ciaran Byrne said the "overall demand has remained very strong across all schemes."
"The removal of Vat on solar panels has driven significant demand on this programme and it is likely to continue into the third and fourth quarters of 2023," Mr Byrne said.
"On the supply side, the additional registration of five one stop shops this quarter points to continued strong interest in the longer-term economic opportunities offered.
"We anticipate the increased supply to further drive demand and cost competitiveness.”