The number of Irish families unable to heat their homes more than doubled in the last year.
A report by Friends of the Earth puts the increase down to inadequate incomes, inefficient housing, and high energy costs.
It also said the Government's new climate and energy poverty plans are failing to combat the energy price crisis and household reliance on fossil fuels.
Clare O'Connor - Energy Policy Officer at Friends of the Earth - says the Government's plans are flawed.
"Ultimately what the report finds is the measures that have been announced in the Climate Action Plan, and the Government's Energy Poverty plan, they fundamentally don't go far enough to protect households from rising energy bills and reduce emissions.
"The short term relief we're seeing on energy bills at the moment, it doesn't address the root causes of energy poverty, which are low income, high energy costs and poor quality housing."
