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In the residential sector, space heating accounts for 66% of the total energy demand in 2016 and water heating represents another 17% (Figure 7.6). Residential appliances (11%) and cooking (5%) account for the remaining shares.

Institutions

The Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment (DCCAE) is the lead ministry for the development of energy efficiency policies and oversees policy implementation. It also co-ordinates energy efficiency policies and measures across other institutions and is responsible for transposition of the European Union (EU) energy efficiency directives into Irish law.

The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) is a state agency under the DCCAE, and administers and implements most of the National Energy Efficiency Action Plans (NEEAPs) and other energy efficiency programmes. It is responsible for advising the government on policies related to energy efficiency, reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, promoting renewable energy, and developing and demonstrating new technologies. SEAI responsibilities have expanded over time, and its staff resources have increased accordingly.

The DCCAE works closely with other government ministries with responsibility for implementing energy efficiency measures in the NEEAPs, including the Department of Transport and the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, which is responsible for improving energy efficiency requirements for buildings under the building regulations.

Energy efficiency targets

Ireland set a non-binding, national target to improve its energy efficiency by 20% by 2020. The target is calculated based on the average final energy used over the period 2001-05 and is equivalent to 31 925 gigawatt hours (GWh) of primary energy savings by 2020 (DCENR, 2009). The government set a separate target for the public sector to reach 33% energy savings by 2020, which contributes to the national effort towards the 20% target.

Ireland produces a NEEAP every three years in line with the EU Energy Efficiency Directive. The latest was in 2017. The 2017 report will be the last as energy efficiency reporting will be subsumed into the National Energy & Climate Plan 2021-2030 as from 2021. The NEEAP is Ireland’s central energy efficiency policy document. It provides a comprehensive overview of the strategies and policies in place across all sectors and monitors developments. The energy efficiency policies implemented under the NEEAP 3, which ran from 2013 to 2016, and its two predecessors have resulted in substantial progress towards meeting the 2020 target.

Ireland achieved 12% energy savings by the end of 2016, corresponding to 18 654 GWh, which reduced carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by approximately 4.4 million tonnes (Mt) (DCCAE, 2017a). The savings represented over EUR 1 billion (euros) of reduced energy bills nationally (SEAI, 2016a). Ireland expects to reach energy savings of 16.2%, equivalent to 25 904 GWh by 2020, based on the policy measures in place up to the end of 2016 (Figure 7.7). This leaves a shortfall of 3.8% that would require additional measures.

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Figure 7.7 Primary energy savings by sector, compared to 2020 target

In 2016, Ireland had achieved 12% of the 20% energy savings target by 2020; current measures will not be sufficient to reach the 2020 target.

Source: DCCAE (2017a), National Energy Efficiency Action Plan for Ireland #4 2017-2020, www.dccae.gov.ie/documents/NEEAP%204.pdf.

The expected shortfall against the 20% target could still be made up through the full and timely implementation of additional measures. These are set out in the NEEAP 4 that became effective in 2017 and covers the period up to the end of 2020. Additional policy and strategy documents such as the Public Sector Energy Efficiency Strategy of 2017, the first National Mitigation Plan of 2017, the Long Term Renovation Strategy (20172020) and the 2018 National Development Plan (NDP) complement the NEEAP 4.

Beyond 2020, the government has identified a technical potential to save a further 16 000 GWh by 2030. However, this will require deeper and more expensive measures, especially in the buildings sector, and decarbonisation of heat, as most simpler measures will have already been implemented. Scaling up energy efficiency will also require increasing policy efforts and sufficient levels of funding (DCCAE, 2017b).

Energy efficiency funding and advisory services

After a sharp reduction in public funding for energy efficiency due to the economic crisis, funding has increased markedly since 2016. The budget allocation available to the SEAI for 2018 was EUR 107 million. This compares to total funding of EUR 452 million for the period 2011-17, of which EUR 100.2 million was for 2017 and EUR 72.7 million for 2016. The projects funded from the 2018 budget are expected to result in savings of 483 GWh and 120 kilotonnes of carbon dioxide (ktCO2) during 2018.

Financial incentives and support programmes are made available through several measures, and target specific sectors. An Energy Efficiency Fund was launched in 2014 to provide specialised financial services for large-scale energy efficiency projects in the non-residential sector. EUR 73.8 million was committed by investors, of which EUR 35 million was committed by the government as a minority shareholder. The investment period for the Energy Efficiency Fund closed on 8 May 2018. EUR 14 million for project investments called on the government’s funding commitment, including for the Mater Hospital energy retrofit project, which is a EUR 10.5 million energy performance contract, fully funded by the Energy Efficiency Fund. The remaining balance of the

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government’s original commitment to the fund is due to be transferred to the newly established Climate Action Fund, which will support energy efficiency investments (see Chapter 6 on “Energy and climate”).

An accelerated capital allowance programme has been operating since 2008 to encourage use of energy-efficient technologies. The list of eligible technologies is updated on an ongoing basis. Its purpose is to encourage businesses to purchase equipment and machinery that are highly energy efficient by enabling companies to write down the capital cost in the year of purchase instead of over the standard 8 year period for equipment not listed in the SEAI’s Triple E (Energy Efficient Equipment) Register.

The Better Energy Financing programme supports applied research for developing innovative financing solutions for deeper levels of building upgrades, and investigates how to incentivise greater uptake of home retrofit programmes in the residential sector.

Offering access to advisory services is another enabler to enhance energy efficiency, as financing options alone are seldom sufficient to initiate action by decision makers. The government has therefore broadened the mandate of the SEAI and increased its resources. In 2018, 92 staff worked at the SEAI, up from 78 in 2017 and 56 in 2016. The SEAI set up the National Energy Modelling Group to assess the impact of government programmes and to provide policy advice on the evidence base obtained by the modelling.

The SEAI created a new research unit for behavioural economics in 2017 to raise awareness among the business and household sectors and to better understand their motivations in uptake of sustainable energy solutions. A technical bureau was also set up in 2017 to complement the range of programmes undertaken by the DCCAE and the SEAI. The SEAI also produces annual energy forecasts to inform the debate on future energy trends and to allow the government to take corrective measures.

A key aspect of SEAI activities is promotion of awareness of energy efficiency among suppliers and customers. The SEAI is also offering energy management training for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and free information and best practice guidelines on energy management.

Public sector targets and strategies

Ireland set a target of 33% improvement of energy efficiency for the public sector to demonstrate the government’s leadership role on energy efficiency and climate action. Public bodies and schools achieved a 20% efficiency improvement by the end of 2016 compared to the baseline of 2009. The value of the cumulative energy savings up to 2016 was EUR 737 million and the cumulative avoided CO2 emissions were over 2.7 million tonnes (Mt) (SEAI, 2017b).

The 33% target would be equivalent to energy savings of 3.2 terawatt hours (TWh), or avoided CO2 emissions of 5.9 Mt for the period 2009-20, and monetary savings of EUR 246 million by 2020 (DCCAE, 2017c).

The SEAI and the DCCAE have put in place an online energy monitoring and reporting system and publish an annual public sector energy efficiency performance report to track progress. Over 3 100 projects and measures were reported on in 2016, of which over half focused on structured energy management improvements, lighting, heating and

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building fabric. Other areas targeted were information and communication systems, water services, onsite renewables and transport (SEAI, 2017b).

The combined primary energy savings of public bodies and schools in 2016 was 2 336 GWh, equivalent to 0.52 Mt of annual CO2 savings (Figure 7.8). The value of the energy savings reported for 2016 was EUR 133 million. The public sector was estimated to annually spend EUR 565 million on energy (DCCAE, 2017b). Based on the savings obtained by the end of 2016, reaching the 33% target would require approximately 3 879 GWh of primary energy savings by 2020 (SEAI, 2017b).

Figure 7.8 Sources of energy savings in the public sector, 2016

In 2016, Ireland achieved around 20% of the targeted 33% public sector energy savings by 2020, mostly from commercial state bodies, local authorities and water services.

* Others includes non-commercial state agencies/bodies, civil services, justice and defence and schools (including educational training boards).

Source: SEAI (2017b), Annual Report 2017 on Public Sector Energy Efficiency Performance, www.seai.ie/resources/publications/2017_Annual_Report_on_Public_Sector_Energy_Efficiency_Performance.pdf.

Although the progress made to 2016 was substantial, there are significant challenges ahead for the public sector to meet the 2020 target. Savings have come from low-cost measures such as behavioural change campaigns, smarter use of energy and equipment upgrades. Progress from 2015 to 2016 plateaued, indicating that the potential for those measures is nearing exhaustion. Reaching the 2020 target will require additional effort, including an increase in capital investment and implementing complex and costly projects such as deep renovation of buildings, public lighting upgrades and construction of new nearly zero energy buildings.

The government therefore issued Ireland’s first Public Sector Energy Efficiency Strategy in 2017 (DCCAE, 2017c). This identified savings potential and set out an institutional and regulatory framework to enable the public sector to identify, develop and implement the larger-scale energy efficiency projects that are needed going forward towards 2020. A centralised project pipeline is being developed as part of this process to provide the government with a strategic overview of investment opportunities, especially in energyintensive public bodies. All public sector bodies are required to appoint energy performance officers at a senior level that have decision-making powers on finance, personnel and facilities.

Public sector bodies can retain the savings achieved from energy efficiency improvements and redeploy them within their organisation according to their priorities. The strategy provides clarity on the retention of savings, which is expected to encourage investment in energy efficiency.

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