141. Deputy Michael Murphy asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the level of funding currently allocated to any solar photovoltaic grant or support scheme for medically vulnerable customers; the amount of funding that remains available under such schemes for the remainder of 2026; the number of applications approved to date in 2026; whether individuals who are dependent on medical devices in the home, including continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machines, are considered medically vulnerable for the purposes of eligibility; the qualifying criteria applied; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47845/26]

The life support category of the Priority Services Register is for households who have a dependence on electrically powered equipment, including medical equipment, life protecting devices and assistive technologies such as dialysis machines and respirators. Individual homeowners should contact their own energy supplier for details on eligibility to register.

This register is maintained by the energy suppliers as required by the Commission for Regulation of Utilities. The definition of vulnerable customers is set out in Regulation 2 of Statutory Instrument 463/2011.

The Solar PV for the Medically Vulnerable Scheme is a targeted pilot scheme for providing fully Government funded solar PV panels for customers/households who are on this register. This is because these households may have a higher energy demand than the average user and this scheme is designed to go some way towards helping to reduce those energy costs.

The Solar PV for Medically Vulnerable Scheme is operated by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) in conjunction with energy suppliers, with each energy supplier contacting their own eligible customers directly, in line with the work plans for their solar PV installers. Eligible households can avail of a fully funded 2kWp solar PV system, including survey/design, supply, installation, and the post works BER.

The scheme is energy supplier-led, meaning each energy supplier is responsible for contacting their own eligible customers directly. Government, through the SEAI, funds each energy supplier for the installations they provide to their eligible customers.

This year Government has made €11.71 million available for the scheme, targeting 1,907 installations. To end May, energy suppliers have drawn down €1.74 million and 257 households have received an upgrade under the scheme.

It is important to emphasise again that it is the energy suppliers who manage the administrative aspects of the scheme and issue offers to eligible homeowners. Each participating supplier received an allocated amount of funding under their Memorandum of Understanding with the SEAI and it is the energy supplier who contacts eligible households in batches, based on the energy supplier's operational capacity.

I would encourage all households who are eligible to contact their energy supplier to get on the Priority Services Register.