Dublin’s Energy Agency

Dublin’s Energy Agency (Codema) acts as the energy agency to the four local authorities in Dublin – Dublin City Council (DCC), Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council (DLRCC), Fingal County Council (FCC) and South Dublin County Council (SDCC).  

Codema supports each of these Councils to lead the low-carbon transition by improving their own energy efficiency, incorporating renewable energy technologies and reducing their greenhouse gas emissions, while also facilitating wider decarbonisation across the Dublin region. 

Codema was set up as a not-for-profit limited company by Dublin City Council in 1997 under the SAVE II Programme of the European Union. It was one of 14 local energy agencies set up around Ireland to help local authorities meet their energy performance targets through professional development and implementation of good and best practices. 

The agency’s vision is for a better quality of life for all citizens through a fair and inclusive transition to a low-carbon society. Its mission is to accelerate Dublin’s low-carbon transition through innovative and inclusive local-level energy and climate change research, planning, engagement and project delivery, to mitigate the effects of climate change and improve the lives of citizens. 

Activities 

To support its mission, Codema approaches its work in the following ways:  

• Working with the four Dublin Local Authorities in leading and influencing the low-carbon transition; 

• Making innovative energy projects mainstream with wide-scale impact; 

• Influencing national and European policy through on-the-ground knowledge of best-practice models in Europe; 

• Supporting networks of communities in developing a low-carbon energy model; 

• Identifying and championing best-practice, low-carbon transport and building solutions. 

Codema is proud of its successes in bringing innovative energy projects and methods to Ireland. For example, Codema works with the Dublin City Council, Fingal County Council and South Dublin County Council to develop Ireland’s first large-scale district heating networks, which will supply homes, businesses, and public sector buildings in the Dublin area with low-carbon, renewable heat.  

Using their knowledge of European best practice, the Codema team is working with all four Dublin Local Authorities to implement Energy Performance Contracting (EPC), with four projects already ongoing in Dublin City Council, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and Fingal County Council.  

The Energy Planning team at Codema has also developed the Dublin Region Energy Master Plan, which is the first of its kind in Ireland and provides spatially-led, evidence-based solutions for reducing the capital’s emissions towards 2030 and 2050.  

To improve energy and climate awareness among citizens, Codema is also using innovative methods, such as the successful Home Energy Saving Kit scheme, extensive local engagement programmes within the Councils’ Decarbonising Zones, and the development of a collaborative roadmap for Dublin’s energy transition, with citizens at the forefront, through the Zero Together initiative.