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FUEL SUPPORT PAYMENTS will be made to farmers and agricultural contractors by the end of June, ministers confirmed today. 

The details of the government’s €100m Fuel Support Scheme and the €120m Road Transporters Scheme were announced by Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon and Transport Minister Darragh O’Brien at Government Buildings this morning. 

Cabinet yesterday signed off on the details of the Fuel Support Subsidy Scheme for farmers, farm contractors and fisheries.

Construction contractors and quarry truck drivers will also be covered by the new scheme, a move first reported by The Journal, which is to be finalised in the coming days.

Payments

Under the €100m scheme, payments will be made to businesses from March to July of this year in an effort to shield businesses most exposed to the increased cost of fuel since the start of Israel and the US’s war on Iran.

Approximately 120,000 farmers and 1,500 full-time agricultural contractors are eligible to receive payments through the scheme, with funding allocated based on fuel usage last year.

It is estimated that the reduction for farmers comes to €274 for every 1,000 litres of green diesel used

There will be one payment per applicant to cover a full five-month period rather than monthly payments.

Road Transporters Support Scheme 

Related to this, O’Brien set out details of the support scheme for hauliers after sign-off from Cabinet.

The Road Transporters Support Scheme (RTSS) will be open to licensed road haulage operators and licensed passenger operators.

Under the scheme, supports will also be provided to the operators of TFI Local Link services under contract with the National Transport Authority (NTA), school transport services through the Department of Education and Youth and for transport services to the islands by the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht.

The RTSS will initially apply for March 2026, with further payments for April and May depending on average national diesel prices, as measured by the CSO, exceeding €1.90 per litre, the ministers said.

This threshold “reflects the point at which fuel costs become unsustainable for many commercial transport operators”.

Payments will be graduated based on the numbers of vehicles on an operator’s licence. The graduated approach means that smaller businesses will be receiving a proportionately greater level of support, the Department said.

Number of Vehicles Owned

• Up to and including five vehicles per operator – €1,350 per vehicle
• For vehicles six to 20 per operator – €790 per vehicle
• For vehicles 21+ – €300 per vehicle

Applications can be made through an online portal, expected to open in May.

The Department estimates that 25,700 licensed haulage vehicles, 12,400 other haulage vehicles and 11,900 licensed passenger vehicles may be eligible for the scheme.

Both schemes were signed off by the government after protests by farmers and hauliers almost brought the country to a standstill earlier this month.

The government’s fuel price supports were welcomed by hauliers. 

Heydon, who is also minister for food and marine, said a fuel support scheme for fishers and aquaculture “tailored to the specific needs of that sector” will be operated separately by Bord Iascaigh Mhara on behalf of his Department.

It will also be calculated on the basis of fuel consumption with specific eligibility criteria for the different categories of fishers. It is also anticipated that the scheme will open in May, he said.

The scheme comes on top of a reduction in excise rates for fuel, the National Oil Reserves Agency levy, and the increased rate allowed under the Diesel Rebate Scheme.

Today, the government also launched a communications campaign designed to support householders and businesses to manage their energy costs – similar to a strategy following the energy shocks arising out of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

 O’Brien said: “What the campaign will do is provide specific examples to people about how they can reduce energy, about when they should use energy, about looking not to use energy where they can at peak times – particularly between 5pm and 7pm and looking at off-peak hours to use things.

“I think this is known by many people.”

O’Brien said the campaign will also highlight supports available to people, including through retrofitting and solar PV grants.

With reporting by Press Association