Householders installing solar panels will be entitled to an additional grant worth €600 for storage batteries as part of a budget initiative designed to reduce dependence on fossil fuels for home energy.
The grant will be paid in addition to the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) grant of up to €1,800 for solar PV systems, The Irish Times has learned.
It will form a central part of Minister for Energy Darragh O’Brien’s proposals aimed at encouraging households to shift to cleaner forms of energy.
The Department of Energy has calculated that households where a battery is installed alongside a 4kWp Solar PV system will generate as much as €900 in savings every year.
It is estimated that more than 100,000 homes in Ireland have now installed solar panel systems after availing of SEAI grants.
There was a particularly sharp spike in 2025 with solar installed in 33,000 homes and SEAI data from the first quarter of 2026 indicates a further increase this year.
While the grant available to homeowners has decreased, the systems themselves have also come down in price over the past five years. About half of all installations now include battery storage.
Battery prices vary but they typically cost more than €4,000.
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The department is also set to allow for the introduction of smaller plug-in solar panels, sometimes known as balcony panels.
These are units that can be connected to a standard household plug using an inverter. When the panel is in place, the inverter changes the current from DC to AC which flows into the circuit in the home. The relatively small amount of electricity generated can be used to run electrical appliances in the homes.
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German retailer Lidl has sold plug-in balcony solar panels throughout Europe. They have been sold in Germany at a price of €299. They are not available in Ireland but a review by ESB Networks of the network requirements and regulations is being completed this month and could pave the way for their use in the State from later this year.
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