Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this important issue, which is worthy of many local authorities and towns across the country. I am taking this debate on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan.

The Government's policy regarding the increased usage of EVs is primarily driven by the climate action plan, which sets a target of having 936,000 EVs on Ireland's roads by 2030. To support these EVs, Ireland has a comprehensive charging network available to EV owners to charge their vehicles. A number of operators provide these charge points, with the majority being rolled out by EasyGo and by the ESB through its ecars programme. Each provider has a map outlining the availability of these charge points, which is updated in real time.

Charge point operators in Ireland mainly provide charge points that are standard 22 kWh or higher 50 kWh and 150 kWh. Standard charge points are located on streets and in strategic destinations, such as train stations, hotels, shopping centres, etc. The fast and high-powered charge points are mainly focused along the motorways. In addition to the main network, charge points are provided at locations such as places of employment and private car parks. Currently, there are circa 2,000 charge points in Ireland, with this number continuing to grow.

Some €10 million was committed from the climate action fund to support ESB investment in the charging network. This has leveraged a further €10 million investment from ESB.