Minister Rabbitte launches Better Energy

Government provides additional €30 million under Jobs Initiative for national retrofit programme.

Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Pat Rabbitte T.D, today launched Better Energy – The National Upgrade Programme which will streamline the existing residential programmes, support jobs and help consumers lower their energy bills. Welcoming the decision by the Minister for Finance to allocate an additional €30 million towards the new programme, Minister Rabbitte said, “Better Energy is a major step forward in this Government’s retrofitting programme. Given energy price trends and growing concerns over security of supply, the way we use energy is no longer simply a question of environmental responsibility but one of economic necessity. Every euro spent by homeowners and businesses on energy efficiency, not only brings about long term energy savings, but also helps support jobs and indigenous companies.”

The key elements of today’s announcement include:
 An additional €30M in Government funding in 2011
 The extra funding will support an additional 2,000 jobs in 2011
 The streamlining of programmes to make it easier for people to make an informed choice about the most suitable energy saving measure for them
 The involvement of the energy companies as partners in delivering energy savings.
 The start of the process of moving to new financial models such as pay as you save, which will foster sustained jobs and savings in this area.

What is Better Energy?
Put simply, Better Energy is a programme designed to ensure that there are more opportunities for householders and businesses to reduce their energy consumption leading to real and lasting cost savings.
Better Energy builds upon what was good about the existing grant schemes and adds a role for energy suppliers, a transition to an upfront discount rather than a retrospective grant and a national pay-as-you-save scheme.
Better Energy will replace the three existing programme: Home Energy Saving Scheme (HES), Warmer Homes Scheme (WHS) and Greener Homes Scheme (GHS), under one umbrella.

Better Energy

Where we are now?

Most people could improve their comfort and reduce their energy bills by upgrading the energy efficiency of their home. Actions include improving insulation, upgrading the boiler or installing better heating controls

Upgrades make economic sense given that heating bills can often be halved and so over a number of years the savings add up to more than the initial outlay

Government grants cover about one third of the cost of typical upgrade measures, and are proving very popular. More than 1,000 upgrades are being carried out every single week

This activity supports jobs, especially since upgrades tend to be labour intensive. More than 5000 full time jobs were supported in 2010. In the past two years, more than one quarter of a billion euro has been spent in the home energy upgrade sector in Ireland.

What comes next?

The next major evolution will be to find new ways to fund the upgrades so that more people can participate without the need to pay upfront to gain savings down the line. Innovative financing models such as “pay as you save” lend money for upgrades with repayments linked to the savings. The ideal model is when a homeowner pays nothing upfront and repays the cost of an upgrade at a rate the same as the energy bill reduction generated. Work is underway to move to this new system by 2013.

Greener Homes Scheme Closed

The Greener Homes and Home Energy Saving schemes have been suspended for new applications from Midnight, Monday 9th May, 2011 pending government announcements regarding the forthcoming Jobs Initiative.  Following planned announcements this week by the Minister for Finance and the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, revised scheme details will be published on the SEAI website.It is currently expected that the revised schemes will reopen for applications on Monday 16th May, 2011.  Ahead of that time, any confirmed details of the new schemes will be published on the SEAI website.

ESB Electric Ireland extends Household Budget Price Plan

ESB Electric Ireland, on its entry to the competitive residential energy market, launched a range of price plans earlier this month. Under these offerings customers can apply for savings on electricity-only, gas-only and dual-products. This reduction does not happen automatically so if you are interested please use contact options below to avail of the offer.

Full details (including terms and conditions) in relation to ESB Electric Ireland’s price offerings are available at www.esbelectricireland.ie
or call 1850 30 50 90.

Renewable energy grew by 15% per annum for five years up to 2009

According to the annual Energy in Ireland report from The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), renewable energy in Ireland grew by an average of 15% per annum from 2005 to  2009. In parallel, 2009 witnessed a steady trend towards lower energy prices in Ireland for both domestic and business energy users.

Launched at an event in Dublin in December, the report, Energy in Ireland 1990-2009 shows that in addition to the decline in economic activity, increased energy efficiency and the consistent growth of renewables on the national grid contributed to a significant decline in energy-related CO₂ emissions in 2009 of 11%.

The report also shows that overall energy use declined by 9% in 2009, with sectors such as industry at 13%, services at 12% and transport at 10% witnessing the greatest fall.

Launching the report, Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Eamon Ryan T.D. said: “I am encouraged by the findings of the latest Energy in Ireland report, particularly to see renewable energy grow at a time when energy prices are falling for both business and domestic consumers. Contrary to some perceptions, Ireland’s position in terms of energy prices relative to the rest of Europe continues to improve, with prices for many consumers now below the EU average.”

Minister Ryan concluded: “By continuing to reduce wasteful use of energy in our homes and businesses, and by making much fuller use of our natural energy resources, we can dramatically improve our competitiveness, our energy security and reduce our exposure to volatile fuel prices.”

Commenting on the report, SEAI Chief Executive Professor Owen Lewis said: “Energy in Ireland 1990-2009 reflects important trends in our approach to, and management of, energy demand and supply in Ireland.  We are seeing some positive results shine through as renewable energy continues to grow and energy efficiency continues to improve across all sections of society. As energy becomes more central to enterprise and our economy, it is increasingly important for us to keep a close eye on the emerging trends.”

Case Study: A typical domestic installation makes savings over it’s lifetime

Ashgrove installed a heating system for a domestic customer in their 2,500 sq. ft.  four bedroom dormer new build. Upon approaching Ashgrove for advice the customer was unsure as to the best solution to heat their home. Ashgrove Advisors were able to explore all available options with the customer to ensure that they were informed of all the solutions available before a decision was made. The customer was interested in differentiating their options in terms of installation costs, and running costs. Ashgrove were able to calculate the related costs for the customer before they committed to a particular system.

        The customer was interested in comparing the renewable solutions offered by Ashgrove against a traditional fossil fuel system. An oil boiler central heating system providing heat to a traditional radiator system was quoted at € 3,780 to install. The annual running cost associated with oil fills and one boiler service was calculated at € 1,890.

        Ashgrove specified a Geothermal Heat Pump which would provide heating and hot water to the home for an installed cost of € 11,200 (including ground collector pipework). The annual running cost would be € 650 of electrical energy, plus one service at € 198       

        In order to achieve the highest possible savings Ashgrove recommend underfloor heating when installing a heat pump. Underfloor heating will ensure the most efficient operation of the system and provides a more comfortable and controllable means of heating the home. The installed cost for this home was calculated at € 4,550.

         An alternative solution was suggested in the form of an Air to Water (A2W) Heat Pump. This unit draws outside air through itself and in a similar fashion to the geothermal unit it provides hot water inside the home. An A2W unit means less installation work as there is no ground collector installed. Because the customer was unsure as to the layout of the site they requested that this solution be considered. This solution would cost € 11,450 to install, with annual running costs of € 890.

        Over a 30 year period the oil boiler would cost € 56,700 to run (without taking increases in oil prices into account) while the geothermal heat pump would cost €9,500, a saving of € 32,650 (including the initial cost of the underfloor heating). An Air to Water heat pump would provide savings of €29,700 per annum over the oil boiler system. This is assuming that the boiler has not been replaced, at least once!

Apart from the financial benefits of choosing a renewable technology the customer will enjoy a higher level of comfort through better controllability and a cleaner source of heat, which is friendlier to the environment. A geothermal heat pump is a more aesthetic solution and can be located in a kitchen or utility with the minimum of impact.

Ashgrove Renewables slash 61% off of annual heating bill

Ger Moroney approached Ashgrove to upgrade his existing heating system at his home in Co. Clare. His 230m² home’s original heating system was installed in November 2005, consisting of an oil boiler and two floors of underfloor heating, utilising weather compensating control. A survey revealed his annual heating bill to be approximately € 1,815. Ashgrove installed a 12kW Geothermal Heat Pump with two vertical borehole collectors in August 2008. This unit now provides heating & hot water. A dedicated ESB meter was fitted to the unit to monitor running costs. Over the following 12 months the running cost was calculated at € 722. The client realised a direct saving of € 1,093, or 61% of the previous years running costs.

Upgrade Your Heating System Controls (Grant Available)

“What difference do controls make?”; “What are the best types?”

Controls have come a long way in the past ten years and they afford an excellent way to improve comfort conditions and save energy. Read more »

Changes to the Home Energy Saving Scheme

From 8th June 2010, a Building Energy Rating (BER) is an integral part of all grant applications under the Home Energy Saving scheme, whereby homeowners must undertake a BER on their home after grant aided works have been completed. This will give homeowners a thorough and objective assessment of the energy performance of their home following upgrade works, including a rating on an A-G scale. The first such BER assessment will attract grant aid of €100. SEAI has also developed a smart online Home Energy Self Survey to help homeowners decide which upgrade works might be most suitable for their home.

Read more »

The New Generation of NIBE Heat Pump

Hot Water Heating Tip

Use the timer on immersion heaters. This should supply you with enough hot water as and when you need.

Read more »