Budget 2027 backs rooftop solar. But how do we deliver the next 5 GW?

Budget 2027 has delivered positive measures for households considering solar, homeowners looking to add battery storage and businesses investing in renewable electricity. But while the Government is backing rooftop solar, Ireland's 2030 ambitions depend on much more. With over 3 GW of solar capacity already installed and a target of 8 GW by 2030, the question is whether we are creating the conditions to deliver the next 5 GW, including the large-scale projects that will be essential to getting there.

The introduction of a €600 residential battery grant expanded eligibility for solar PV supports and increased support for businesses are welcome developments. Residential battery support was one of Solar Ireland's five recommendations for Budget 2027, and its introduction represents an important step towards helping households make better use of the electricity they generate. The Government has also committed €654.5 million to SEAI residential and community energy upgrades, with Minister Jack Chambers explicitly identifying additional solar PV deployment as an outcome of that investment.

More than 200,000 Irish homes now have solar, and the increase in the microgeneration income tax disregard from €400 to €600 means households can receive more income from selling surplus electricity to the grid without incurring income tax on those payments, within the applicable conditions. Taken together, these measures recognise that solar has an increasingly important role in household energy costs, business competitiveness, and Ireland's wider electricity system.

But they also raise two questions: how do we make solar accessible to more people, and how do we ensure the next phase of solar development happens at the scale and pace Ireland requires?

Making solar affordable is only part of the challenge

The new supports will help more households consider investing in solar and storage. However, affordability remains a significant barrier. Even with €1,800 available towards a domestic solar PV installation and €600 towards a battery, households still face a substantial upfront investment. For many families, particularly those already struggling with energy costs, that remains out of reach.

This is an important distinction in a Budget focused heavily on the cost of living. The Government's decision to reduce carbon tax on home-heating fuels reflects the immediate pressure many households face. Measures that provide short-term relief are understandable, particularly for families already struggling with energy costs. But immediate affordability and long-term energy security must go hand in hand. Ireland cannot permanently protect households from volatile fossil fuel prices through short-term interventions alone. We also need to make it easier for people to move towards technologies that reduce their exposure to those costs in the first place.

Solar can help households reduce the amount of electricity they need to purchase, while batteries allow them to use more of the electricity generated on their own roofs. Combined with wider electrification, these technologies can give families greater control over their energy costs and reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels. The challenge is ensuring that the households which could benefit most are not excluded by the upfront cost of making that transition. Government's expanded supports for lower-income and vulnerable households are therefore particularly welcome. Looking ahead, there is an opportunity to consider how targeted grants, accessible finance and other delivery models could bring the benefits of solar and storage to a much wider range of households.

There is also a need for long-term certainty. At the Solar Ireland conference, Minister O'Brien announced that residential solar support would continue to 2030. We welcomed that commitment and look forward to official clarification on how the Microgeneration Support Scheme will operate, including the level of support available in the years ahead.

Certainty matters not only to homeowners, but also to the installers, manufacturers and businesses investing in the people and capacity needed to meet growing demand.

The bigger challenge: delivering the next 5 GW

While Budget 2027 provides new stimulus for residential and commercial solar, there is much less that directly addresses the investment environment for utility-scale projects.

Ireland has now passed 3 GW of installed solar capacity. That is a significant achievement for an industry that has expanded rapidly in recent years, bringing renewable electricity generation to homes, farms, businesses and the national grid. But Ireland's 2030 target is 8 GW.

That means delivering approximately another 5 GW in just over three years. A substantial proportion of that additional capacity will need to come from large-scale solar projects.

Those projects depend on private investment, and investors need confidence that developments can progress through planning, secure viable grid connections and operate within a predictable regulatory and market framework. But at the moment, developers face rising development and connection costs alongside continuing planning, grid, and regulatory challenges. These pressures affect project viability, financing decisions and ultimately the pace at which new capacity can be delivered.

As Ronan Power, CEO of Solar Ireland, explains:

"The industry has demonstrated that it can build. But Government policy depends heavily on private investment to deliver Ireland's renewable electricity infrastructure. We cannot expect industry to absorb continually rising costs and increasing risk while also asking it to deliver significantly more capacity, faster."

The challenge is not to simply set ambitious targets, but to ensure the investment and delivery conditions are capable of turning those targets into operational projects. And this is not only an issue for the solar industry. Ireland is investing heavily in housing, enterprise, transport and infrastructure. At the same time, electrification of heating and transport, alongside growing electricity demand across the economy, will place increasing demands on the power system.

We cannot accelerate electrification on one side of the system without accelerating renewable generation, storage, flexibility and grid delivery on the other. Investment in renewable electricity infrastructure is therefore not simply an energy policy priority. It is fundamental to Ireland's economic development, energy security and competitiveness.

Building solar into Ireland's future

Budget 2027 also provides an opportunity to think differently about how solar is incorporated into publicly funded infrastructure. The Government has allocated funding for 11,250 new-build social homes. Where technically appropriate, solar should be installed as part of the original construction, rather than leaving households and the State facing the potential cost and disruption of retrofitting it later. Integrating solar from the outset can reduce installation costs, improve coordination with other electrical systems and allow residents to benefit from renewable electricity as soon as they move in. The same principle deserves consideration across the wider public estate, including schools and other public buildings undergoing construction or major refurbishment.

There are also practical policy barriers that Budget 2027 has not resolved. Solar Ireland's submission called for simplification of Relevant Contracts Tax for specialist subcontractors involved in solar development, increased resources and technical capacity for the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, and changes to Capital Acquisitions Tax Agricultural Relief to better accommodate Agri-Solar.

These are targeted measures, but their implications are significant. They affect access to specialist expertise, the capacity of the regulatory system to manage change and the opportunities for farmers to participate in renewable energy development. Addressing them would help strengthen the conditions in which the industry operates and invests.

Budget 2027 has opened important new opportunities for rooftop solar, battery storage and commercial installations. Solar Ireland welcomes these developments and looks forward to working with Government and industry to ensure the measures deliver meaningful benefits. But supporting the adoption of solar is only one part of the task ahead. Ireland has just over three years to move from 3 GW to 8 GW of installed solar capacity. Achieving that ambition will require continued household and business investment, a stronger environment for utility-scale development, timely grid delivery and a regulatory framework equipped for a rapidly changing electricity system.

“The question now is not whether Ireland can build more solar. It is whether we are creating the conditions to build enough of it, quickly enough, to meet the targets we have set ourselves.” – Ronan Power