Renewable Energy Generation
Dail Éireann — 2026-09-22
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Marian Harkin (IND), Sligo-Leitrim

As I set out, the electricity and gas retail markets in Ireland operate within a European Union regulatory regime, wherein electricity and gas markets are commercial, liberalised and competitive. Responsibility for the regulation of the electricity and gas markets, including with regard to the clean export guarantee, is solely a matter for the CRU.
In relation to the development of tariffs under the CEG arrangements, the CRU is of the view that the competitive approach, whereby suppliers set their own competitive export tariffs, has functioned well and will continue.
Separately, while the microgeneration support scheme does provide for the sale of surplus electricity back to the grid, domestic solar PV systems are generally sized for self-consumption. The main benefit for householders and businesses is in offsetting the need to buy some or even most of their required electricity from a retailer, or, in other words, from the grid. There is no limit to the area of solar panels that can be installed on the rooftops of homes anywhere in the country. The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, grant is capped at €1,800 for up to 4 kWp of solar panels, but householders can install more if they wish to do so.
A typical solar PV installation can meet a large proportion of a home's electricity usage, and the balance can be used through EV charging, diverting it to hot water heating or battery storage. The aim is to maximise the use of solar generation within the home. Using the electricity generated in homes is the most efficient way to get the best return on their investment. The electricity used within the home has a much greater financial value to the homeowner. Every unit of electricity from a PV array used in the home has a value of somewhere between 30 cent and 35 cent, but every unit of electricity exported back to the grid has a value of between 18 cent and 20 cent per unit. Every unit exported, therefore, is worth approximately 12 cent less than if it had been used within the home.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-09-22/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-28T05:50:49+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-09-22