EXEED Design and Feasibility Grant
Up to 50% of eligible external design and study fees for major non-domestic energy projects in Ireland, with a separate 30% route for projects using SEAI’s alternative delivery assessment.
Questa opportunità è attualmente disponibile in inglese.
SEAI’s EXEED Stage 1 grant supports the work needed to identify, assess and design substantial energy savings before investment. EXEED means Excellence in Energy Efficient Design: it examines what energy a building or process needs and challenges the design before equipment choices are fixed. You can apply for Stage 1 independently of the separate Stage 2 capital grant.
The grant has two routes, each calculated on eligible additional external professional fees:
- EXEED projects: up to 50%. Follow the energy efficient design process and commit to progressing towards EXEED certification.
- Impactful projects: up to 30%. Identify substantial energy savings and meet SEAI’s alternative “Quality & Delivery” assessment of the project team, resources, risks and ability to deliver.
The normal ceiling is €3 million per project across Stage 1 and Stage 2 combined. Higher combined support requires prior approval from the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment. SEAI can award less than the maximum percentage. Other public funding reduces the EXEED support available so total aid stays within the applicable limit.
Eligible services include additional energy-design expertise, technical feasibility and benchmarking studies, specialist consultancy, concept or detailed engineering design, and energy modelling. Fees must relate to additional work to assess or design energy-saving opportunities, beyond work that would have happened anyway. Specialist studies must not duplicate the energy-design expert’s work.
Ordinary design work, internal staff time, travel and accommodation, grant application or claim preparation, and Stage 1 grant-management costs are excluded. Costs already supported for the same opportunities through EXEED or another SEAI programme cannot be funded again. Competitive procurement must demonstrate reasonable prices. VAT is eligible only if it cannot be reclaimed, supported by a Revenue letter dated in the application year.
Eligibility
Businesses, public bodies, nonprofits and other non-domestic organisations can apply. The building, facility, system or process must operate and be located in the Republic of Ireland, with annual final energy consumption of at least 100,000 kWh. This is the energy used by the asset each year. New facilities, major renovations, upgrades and changes of use can qualify.
SEAI must accept all five Stage 1 criteria: a clear asset definition; the EXEED process or alternative delivery assessment; a realistic study schedule; detailed, proportionate professional fees; and energy-saving potential. Define the current design and energy baseline and provide maps or drawings. The asset boundary cannot be drawn around one device or energy use while ignoring the wider project.
For the EXEED route, appoint an Energy Efficient Design Expert who reports to the organisation’s responsible project owner and works independently of the design team. Plan the required studies and certification route. For the Impactful route, demonstrate the project lead’s expertise, capable resources, risk controls and ability to deliver. Stage 1’s schedule assessment concerns the pre-investment studies; expected implementation dates are encouraged.
Normally, an asset can receive Stage 1 funding once. SEAI may allow multiple applications where a project’s size or complexity prevents the studies being completed within the scheme’s budget timelines.
Fisheries, transport emissions unrelated to an on-site process, and projects unrelated to energy are excluded. Costs merely to meet mandatory national standards or correct defective work do not qualify. State-aid rules governing public support for economic activity apply, including the exclusion of businesses in financial difficulty and sector-specific restrictions.
For a third-party-funded project owned and operated by an energy services company, that company must apply, rather than its client. It must meet the applicant conditions, disclose the client arrangement and have a signed contract passing the full grant benefit to the client, without retaining any part. The contract must allow SEAI access and inspections.
How to apply
- Stato
- Aperto continuamente
- Restrizioni del bando
- Applications are open year-round until further notice.
- Funded professional services must follow the Letter of Offer and finish within its agreed window.
- Payment depends on the annual government allocation and can be deferred if funding is exhausted.
Define the asset, proposed studies, team and fees using the July 2026 grant guidelines linked below. The organisation’s lead applicant then submits the Stage 1 application through the SEAI PEP portal. Include the asset maps or drawings, cost and project details, declarations of solvency and financial resources, and the VAT, small or medium-sized enterprise (SME), or multiple-building documents where applicable. Only complete applications are evaluated.
Obtain the Letter of Offer before starting the professional services you want funded. The scheme’s limited pre-offer exception concerns equipment orders and deposits after SEAI’s written screening confirmation; it does not authorise starting the funded design studies. Return the signed offer within 14 days of issue. The agreement takes effect when SEAI receives it, and the offer sets the eligible fees and completion date.
Complete and pay for the agreed studies within the offer’s funding window. For the EXEED route, reports include the project execution plan, a balance showing where energy is used, evidence of the design options examined, and the register of energy-saving opportunities. Other Stage 1 projects submit their agreed supported reports.
Submit those reports, the payment request, grant-claim workbook, itemised invoices, bank statements proving full payment, valid tax clearance and any required VAT confirmation by the Project Completion Date. SEAI reviews the studies and may require corrections before payment; payment remains subject to the grant agreement and available annual funding.
Obtain approval for changes in scope. If an extension is needed, obtain SEAI’s Extension Request Form and submit the reasons and proposed new completion date before the original deadline. SEAI decides whether to grant an extension; the revised date is final and cannot be extended again. Approved costs and grant amounts cannot increase. Allow SEAI inspections; failure to meet the conditions can lead to repayment. For the EXEED route, failure to pursue the required certification can also trigger recovery of the grant.