New Homes to have Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Points

New Homes to have Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Points

02/03/2021

The next time you buy a new house in Ireland it will likely be fitted with its own Electric Vehicle Charging Point.  On the basis  that Ireland’s Fianna Fail/Fine Gael/Green Party led Government envisions  the nation going fully electric and having 950,000 electric vehicles on our roads by 2030, the race is now on to have all the charging points in place before then. 

Ireland’s Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, supported by the entire Irish Government, plan on making it a legal requirement and compulsory for all new homes in the State to be built with charging points for electric vehicles (EV’s). This follows on from the UK’s decision to construct new properties with EV chargers(https://www.greencharging.co.uk/ev-ready-new-builds/).  Around 80% of EV charging will take place at home making this an essential part of the jigsaw in the EV charging roadmap. In 2019, the UK Government announced in its Budget that it ‘’will make sure all new homes are built with the right cables for electric car charge points.’.’ Now, Ireland is following suit. 

There are many reasons why the Irish Government is planning this, including promoting and supporting an increase in the uptake of people purchasing electric vehicles. Also by ensuring that all new build homes have access to a private car parking space that can avail of an electric charge point, the State is making it so much cheaper and much more convenient for all road users. According to the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, ‘’The estimated cost to install cabling in new houses with a car park space within the property boundary is in the order of €150 per house. This is estimated to be 0.06% of construction cost. Home recharging is considered the primary method of recharging the majority of electric vehicles in Ireland. Recharging at home at night is very cost-effective and it is to the benefit of the electricity system as demand is generally lower at these times’’.

Last year (2020) the Irish Government introduced new regulations requiring  all new buildings with more than ten parking spaces  to install  charging points. Also, from 2025, the Government is committed to having non-residential buildings with over twenty car parking spaces installed with charging points. 

With so many Electric Vehicles already on our roads, people are now a lot more enthusiastic about  having and using a cleaner and a greener (better for the environment) transport. 

So, let’s all get ready for the EV generation!

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Established in 1950 and ISO certified for more than two decades, McKeon Group offers expert construction, fitout and building services. The family-run Group delivers projects, services and maintenance across a range of sectors for State, local authority, FDI and private clients. For more information, contact: www.mckeon.ie