Dublin to host first deep retrofit conference on 21 June

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The conference will bring together policymakers, state bodies, researchers, the building industry and property owners to discuss deep retrofit. It comes just following the launch of SEAI’s pilot deep retrofit programme.

As many as one million homes built in the last century are considered to be very energy inefficient. This means higher energy bills and, in some cases, poorer health and wellbeing for occupants. Delegates at the conference will explore the challenges and opportunities, and share experiences, of deep retrofitting homes.

“We’re exploring ways to help homeowners overcome the various barriers to deep retrofit, while exploring opportunities to build a robust and sustainable supply chain to support this activity. It is also essential that this is completed in the context of what a smarter home, and a smarter grid will look like in the future.” said Jim Gannon, chief executive of SEAI.

“Each year the conference will chart our collective progress as SEAI and others upgrade Ireland’s building stock to the highest efficiency levels.”

SEAI has allocated €5m for its deep retrofit pilot programme in 2017. Funding will be targeted at whole-house deep retrofit projects that employ a fabric-first approach, that bring the BER to a minimum A3, and that employ some renewable energy.

To maximise learnings from the pilot, SEAI aims to fund a range of projects across different building types. The programme is not open to applications from individual homeowners.

Pilot projects will be delivered through community groups, local authorities and energy agencies, and interested persons are advised to contact these groups in their locality to see if there is an opportunity to take part in the programme.

For more information on the conference and deep retrofit pilot programme, see www.seai.ie.