Future Ready Fuel in the Republic of Ireland

The Republic of Ireland is now on a legally binding path to net-zero emissions no later than 2050, and to a 51% reduction in emissions by the end of this decade.

As part of efforts to reach net zero targets, the Government Coalition’s flagship Housing for All plan outlines objectives to install 600,000 heat pumps by 2030, 400,000 of which will be in existing buildings.

The government are offering a grant of up to 50% of a deep retrofit, however the average cost is €56,000, which leaves a large bill for the homeowner to finance. Almost 50% of homes in ROI have a BER rating of D to G, meaning that they would require major upgrades to work efficiently with a heat pump. The average cost for a retrofit in 2022 was €56000*.

* Electric Ireland Superhomes: https://electricirelandsuperhomes.ie/costs-fees/

OFTEC are calling on Government to include Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil in the energy mix, as a simple, affordable and effective solution to decarbonising the home heating sector. Whilst heat pumps will be the right choice for many in new build or thermally efficient homes, for those living in older properties they may not run efficiently.

Around 686,000 households in the Republic of Ireland use a liquid fuel for their heating. With a simple modification, these homes could retain their liquid fuelled boiler and use Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO). HVO is a type of biofuel which offers an immediate reduction of c.87% in carbon emissions and is available NOW.