How much does an Irish hotel spend on energy per year?

A typical Irish hotel (30–60 rooms) spends €35,000–€55,000 per year on energy. Larger hotels spend proportionally more. Energy intensity is typically measured in kWh per guest night — a useful metric for benchmarking and tracking improvement. Irish hotels average 30–50 kWh per guest night, with the best-performing properties achieving under 25 kWh.

What is the biggest energy cost in a hotel?

Hot water is typically the single largest energy cost in hotels, accounting for 20–30% of total energy spend. Guest room heating/cooling is second (20–25%), followed by kitchen and catering (15–20%), lighting (10–15%), and laundry (5–10%). The exact split depends on hotel size, age, and the type of heating system.

What is energy intensity and why does it matter for hotels?

Energy intensity measures energy consumption per unit of output — for hotels, it's typically kWh per guest night or kWh per available room night. This metric adjusts for occupancy, making it possible to compare performance across seasons, years, and properties. A hotel that reduces kWh per guest night by 20% has genuinely improved efficiency, even if total consumption varies with occupancy.

Are there specific energy grants for hotels in Ireland?

Hotels can access all SEAI business energy grants including the Business Energy Upgrades Scheme (SEUS) and the Business Energy Audit Voucher. The SEAI EXEED programme is particularly relevant for larger hotels undertaking comprehensive energy management improvements. The Accelerated Capital Allowance also applies to qualifying equipment. See our SEAI business grants guide.

What's the fastest way for a hotel to reduce energy costs?

The quickest wins in most hotels are: optimising hot water temperature and scheduling (don't maintain 65°C in storage 24/7 if demand is predictable), implementing guest room HVAC controls (key card switches, window sensors), improving kitchen ventilation controls (demand-based rather than constant), and LED lighting with occupancy sensors in corridors, back-of-house, and car parks.

Hotel and Accommodation Energy Management in Ireland

Name: Optim Energy
Address: 6 Fern Road, Sandyford, Dublin, D18 FP98, IE

Hotels and accommodation businesses are Ireland’s most energy-intensive SME sector. A 40-room hotel can easily spend €40,000–€50,000 per year on energy — more than most owners realise until they add up all the bills.

The reasons are structural: hotels need heating, hot water, and lighting 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Guest rooms need climate control. Kitchens consume enormous amounts of gas and electricity. Laundry runs constantly. And the building is never truly “closed.”

But the same factors that make hotels expensive to run also make them the most rewarding sector for energy efficiency. Savings of 20–30% translate to €8,000–€15,000 per year — and unlike occupancy-dependent revenue, these savings are consistent.

The Quick Version

Irish hotels spend €35,000–€55,000/year on energy — the highest of any SME sector
Hot water: 20–30% of total energy — often the single biggest cost
Guest room HVAC: 20–25% — heating empty rooms is common
Kitchen/catering: 15–20% — extraction and cooking dominate
Lighting: 10–15% — corridors and common areas run 24/7
Energy intensity metric: kWh per guest night (Irish average: 30–50; best practice: under 25)
SEAI grants and EXEED programme provide significant funding for hospitality upgrades

Where Hotel Energy Goes

Hot water (20–30% of total energy)

Hotels use more hot water than any other commercial building type. Guest bathrooms, kitchen, laundry, and cleaning all demand hot water throughout the day.

The waste typically isn’t in the usage — it’s in the generation and distribution:

Storage temperature too high. Legionella regulations require storage at 60°C, but many systems maintain 70°C+ “to be safe.” Each unnecessary degree costs money.
Recirculation running 24/7. Hot water recirculation loops keep water hot at taps, but running them overnight when demand is minimal wastes pumping energy and heat.
Poor insulation on pipework. Every uninsulated metre of hot water pipe radiates heat into spaces that don’t need it.
Oversized storage. Systems sized for 100% occupancy running at 60% occupancy heat and maintain more water than needed.

Guest room HVAC (20–25%)

Heating and cooling guest rooms is unavoidable. Heating empty rooms is avoidable — but common:

Empty room heating. Without occupancy-based controls, empty rooms are heated to the same temperature as occupied ones. At 50% occupancy, that’s potentially 50% waste in room heating.
Windows open with heating on. Guests open windows for fresh air without realising the heating or cooling continues. Window contact sensors linked to HVAC solve this.
No setback temperature. Between check-out and check-in, rooms should setback to 15°C (heating) or off (cooling). Many systems maintain guest comfort temperature 24/7.

Key card switches are the simplest solution: the HVAC only runs when the guest’s key card is in the wall slot. When they leave the room, the system reverts to setback mode. Simple, cheap, effective.

Kitchen and catering (15–20%)

Commercial kitchens are energy-intensive environments:

Extraction ventilation runs at full speed regardless of cooking activity. Demand-based kitchen ventilation (linked to cooking hood sensors) can save 40–60% of extraction energy.
Cooking equipment — ovens, grills, hobs — uses gas and electricity. Pre-heating equipment earlier than necessary and leaving it running between services is common.
Refrigeration — walk-in cold rooms and freezers run 24/7. Door discipline, correct temperature settings, and efficient equipment matter.
Dishwashing — high hot water demand. Water recovery heat exchangers on commercial dishwashers can reduce hot water demand by 30%.

Lighting (10–15%)

Hotel lighting runs long hours — corridors, lobbies, and car parks are lit 24/7. Guest rooms, restaurants, function rooms, and back-of-house areas add to the total.

LED conversion with controls is straightforward and delivers the same 50–70% savings as in retail and office settings, but with even higher savings from extended operating hours:

Corridor and lobby: occupancy-responsive dimming (full brightness when people present, 30% brightness otherwise)
Car parks: motion-activated, reduced to minimum between midnight and 6am
Back-of-house: occupancy sensors (stores, plant rooms, staff areas)
Guest rooms: key card master switch cuts all lights when unoccupied

Laundry (5–10%)

On-site laundry is a significant energy consumer through hot water and machine energy. Key efficiency measures:

Correct load sizing (don’t run half-empty machines)
Lower wash temperatures where hygiene standards permit
Heat recovery from waste water
Efficient tumble drying or alternatives (condensing dryers, heat pump dryers)

The Energy Intensity Metric

Revenue and occupancy fluctuate seasonally. Total energy consumption alone doesn’t tell you whether your building is becoming more or less efficient. The solution is energy intensity per guest night:

kWh per guest night = Total energy consumption ÷ Number of guest nights

Performance Level	kWh per Guest Night
Best practice	Under 25
Good	25–35
Average (Irish hotel sector)	35–50
Poor	>50

This metric normalises for occupancy, letting you:

Track genuine efficiency improvements year-over-year
Benchmark against industry standards
Identify seasonal patterns (winter vs summer efficiency)
Measure the impact of specific improvements

Priority Improvements

Quick wins (0–12 month payback)

Measure	Typical Saving	Cost
Hot water schedule optimisation	€1,500–€3,000/yr	€0–€500
Key card HVAC switches in guest rooms	€2,000–€4,000/yr	€200–€400/room
Kitchen extraction demand controls	€1,500–€3,000/yr	€2,000–€5,000
Lighting schedule optimisation	€500–€1,500/yr	€0–€500
Standby equipment reduction	€500–€1,000/yr	€200–€500

Medium-term investments (1–3 year payback)

Measure	Typical Saving	Cost
LED lighting throughout	€3,000–€6,000/yr	€10,000–€25,000
Building management system	€4,000–€8,000/yr	€10,000–€30,000
Hot water heat recovery	€2,000–€4,000/yr	€5,000–€10,000
Insulation improvements	€3,000–€6,000/yr	€15,000–€40,000

Longer-term investments (3–5 year payback)

Measure	Typical Saving	Cost
Heat pump installation	€6,000–€12,000/yr	€25,000–€60,000
Solar PV	€3,000–€6,000/yr	€15,000–€40,000
Window replacement	€3,000–€5,000/yr	€30,000–€80,000

The SEAI EXEED Programme

For hotels undertaking comprehensive energy management, the SEAI EXEED programme provides a structured framework:

Project-specific support from SEAI
Energy management expertise throughout the project
Funding support for qualifying measures
Best suited for major refurbishments or new builds where energy efficiency can be designed in from the start

EXEED is particularly relevant for hotels because the scale of energy spend justifies the comprehensive approach, and the savings potential is highest in hospitality.

Monitoring for Hotels

Hotels benefit from energy monitoring more than almost any other building type. The combination of complex systems, variable occupancy, and high energy spend means:

Waste is harder to spot without data
Savings degradation is faster without monitoring
The payback on monitoring investment is shorter

At minimum, track:

kWh per guest night (monthly)
Gas and electricity consumption vs occupancy
Baseload consumption during low-occupancy periods
Hot water system performance (temperature, runtime, energy)

Next Steps

Calculate your kWh per guest night — total annual energy ÷ total guest nights. Compare to benchmarks above.
Walk the building at midnight. What’s running that shouldn’t be? What’s lit that needn’t be? What’s warm that could be cooler?
Book a commercial energy audit — hospitality buildings have the highest savings potential of any sector
Read the SEAI grants guide — SEUS and EXEED provide significant funding for hospitality upgrades
Check your overall energy costs against sector benchmarks

Hotels spend more on energy than any other SME sector — but they also have the most to gain from efficiency. A 20% reduction on a €45,000 bill is €9,000/year in pure profit.

Energy is one of the largest controllable costs in Irish hospitality. The businesses that manage it well gain a structural cost advantage — lower costs per guest night, better margins, and a building that meets tomorrow’s energy performance standards today.