The Welsh Government will spend £150m to insulate social homes in a bid to reduce Wales’ emissions, it has been announced.

Wales’ Deputy Minister for Climate Change, Lee Waters MS, confirmed the funding will be used to improve social homes which have already been built.

The Welsh Government’s ‘Optimised Retrofit Programme’ will assess each home on an individual basis to determine which technologies will work best to make each home as energy efficient as possible.

The funding will also go towards installing smart technologies in social homes so tenants can control their energy use.

Mr Waters said the funding will cut energy bills for social housing tenants, as well as reduce emissions.

He said: “We are already trialling heat pumps, intelligent energy systems and solar panels with battery storage.

“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.”

Earlier this summer, the Welsh Government announced a ban on the use of fossil fuels to heat all newly-built social homes, and pledged to build 20,000 low carbon social homes over the next five years.

Housing accounts for 9% of all greenhouse gas emissions in Wales.