Ireland launches €2,000 boiler scrappage grant to drive heat pump uptake
Ireland – Ireland has introduced a €2,000 fossil-fuel boiler scrappage grant as part of a new package of measures designed to encourage more households to switch to heat pumps and other renewable heating systems.
The new support applies to eligible homes built before 2021 and will provide an additional €2,000 towards replacing an existing fossil-fuel heating system. SEAI said eligible homeowners who already have a heat pump grant application in progress will receive the additional payment automatically.
Full terms and conditions for the scrappage scheme have yet to be published.
The measure forms part of a wider package of renewable energy and retrofit supports announced by Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment Darragh O’Brien. Support for businesses installing heat pumps is also being increased, with grant aid under SEAI’s Business Energy Upgrades Scheme rising to 45% of eligible costs.
SEAI estimates that an average business heat-pump installation supported under the scheme could deliver energy savings of approximately €3,500 a year.
Unprecedented demad
O’Brien said the measures are intended to help households and businesses reduce energy costs while cutting their dependence on imported fossil fuels. The package also includes enhanced grants for solar PV, battery storage, solar thermal and insulation.
SEAI chief executive William Walsh said demand for the agency’s retrofit programmes had reached unprecedented levels during 2026, with applications for some schemes increasing by more than 200%.
Ireland has allocated a record €640 million to residential retrofit programmes in 2026 and is targeting 73,000 home energy upgrades during the year. SEAI said it had processed 100,000 applications since the start of 2026 and supported more than 287,000 home energy improvements since 2019.
Most of the newly announced measures are due to open from 6 October, subject to final implementation arrangements, while SEAI describes the boiler scrappage support as available immediately. Al eligible homeowners with a heat pump application already in progress will receive an additional boiler scrappage grant of €2,000.
