Deputy Minister for Climate Change Lee Waters has announced an additional £150m to retrofit social homes with new technologies and insulation to help curb Wales’ emissions.

Speaking at a press conference, the Deputy Minister explained how the Welsh Government’s Optimised Retrofit Programme will assess what technologies work best in individual homes to ensure optimum energy efficiency, value for money and top environmental credentials.

The programme will see homes become so well insulated that heat would no longer wastefully escape. The funding will also be used for the installation of smart technologies so tenants can best control their energy use and to install a mix of clean technologies such as heat pumps, solar panels and battery storage.

Housing is one of Wales’ biggest emitters, accounting for 9% of all greenhouse gas emissions in the country. Welsh Government announced a ban on fossil fuels to heat newly built social homes earlier this year, with ambitions for the private sector to follow suit by 2025.

The Government has also committed to building 20,000 low carbon social homes for rent over the next five years.

Deputy Minister for Climate Change, Lee Waters said:

“This investment will not only reduce emissions, but will cut the energy bills of the people who live in them.

“And we are already trialling heat pumps, intelligent energy systems and solar panels with battery storage.

“We are taking a whole homes approach, which assesses what will work best in individual homes. The programme will see homes become so well insulated that heat would no longer wastefully escape.

“Today’s announcement will help thousands more families be warm in their homes and support a just transition towards decarbonisation.”