Vol. 500 No. 6
4 Mr. Yates asked the Minister for Public Enterprise if she will arrange for an immediate external study into the adequacy of electricity generating capacity relative to demand; and if the analysis on this issue is totally dependent upon data from ESB. [3927/99]
I have no plans to commission a further study into the adequacy of electricity generating capacity relative to demand.
Because I was conscious of the interest in information relating to electricity generating capacity, I arranged for the ESB, in consultation with the Department, to prepare a report which was pub lished in October 1998, entitled "Generation Capacity Requirements to 2005". This report was reviewed by the Department's chief technical adviser prior to publication.
The ESB currently has legislative responsibility for ensuring that electricity demand is met and any study on generation capacity requirements would have to draw on ESB data. Looking to the future, the Electricity Regulation Bill, 1998, provides for the preparation by the ESB of a forecast statement covering both generation and transmission. This will be in a form to be approved by the Commission for Electricity Regulation, when established.
Would the Minister agree that to deal with power surges the general rule of thumb is that capacity must be 30 per cent in excess of normal demand in terms of megawattage. At the Joint Committee on Public Enterprise and Transport, Deputy Stagg and I have been advised by the ESB that unless new plant is commissioned there will be power cuts by winter 2001. Is the Minister aware that over the past winter there have been 14 amber alerts whereby the demand for power was so great that they were close to reaching capacity; and that, instead of winter 2001, the necessity for power cuts and load shedding may be more imminent? Therefore, is the Minister not apprised of the need to have some assessment other than that of the ESB as to the real position here given the imminent prospect of competition and the different position of the IPPs and the ESB in this regard? Will she seek departmental or independent assessment given these 14 amber alerts and the need to avoid power cuts in the forthcoming winter? It has been a mild winter. If it had been very cold, the situation would have been much worse.
Any study would have to draw on ESB data. ESB has the data. Neither the Department nor anybody else has it. The ESB has the legislative remit to supply the capacity needed. I am aware there were amber alerts, apart from the difficult Christmas period, which the ESB handled with great ability. The ESB has forecast power cuts by 2001. My Department gave them permission to seek planning permission. Until the legislation establishing a regulator is enacted, I cannot give the go-ahead to build the new plant. I hope that will happen soon. I agree that there is a need for extra power. Two new generating plants are in the pipeline, Poolbeg with added megawatts of 160 which will be ready by December of this year and the IVO which will have added megawatts of 120. Work on this station has started and it will be ready by July 2001. I hope that by then other new stations will have been built or be on the way to being built.
The Minister referred in an earlier reply, to meetings with new IPPs. Is the Minister aware that all of them are proposing a gas fired basis for electricity generation? Is the Minister aware that there is not enough gas to meet all their needs and what proposal does she have to ensure that the EU directive on liberalisation of electricity supply is met by an adequate gas supply?
One of the groups I met has an alternative proposal. They are all aware of the position in regard to gas supply and they queried the Minister of State and myself on the question of potential gas supply and on our plans to meet current and future gas needs. This is the subject of a later question today. The quicker the legislation to establish a regulator is passed the better although I do not suggest that this measure should be rushed. The sooner a regulator is appointed the sooner the ESB will have the authority to go ahead with its plans. Meanwhile, the company has applied for planning permission and for various other environmental impact statements. I have told those who have come to me to discuss plans for building generating stations of the rigorous environmental impact statements which will be required. I have also told them that people are extremely concerned about the environment and about the need for proper environmental standards. They will expect that people will make their views on environmental matters known.
Can the Minister assure the House that there will be no power cuts due to excess surge demand over capacity this year or next year?
No, I cannot assure the Deputy of that. In the same way I cannot assure the Deputy that there will never be another train crash. I am not God, no matter how much the Deputy might like to think I am.
The Minister has responsibilities.
The Act which established the ESB requires the board to make provision and to build sufficient power stations to meet the needs of the Irish economy and people. Is it not extraordinary that the Minister, for fear of Brussels and with no law in place, says that the ESB may not do so? The Minister is preventing the ESB from carrying out its statutory duty. She is telling the ESB it can begin planning but can do no more. Can the Minister explain why one well-established law under which the ESB is required to take definite action is ignored while another law, which is not yet in place, is being used to force the ESB to break the original law?
I explained this matter to the Deputy on previous occasions.
It did not make sense then and it does not make sense now.
I am sure it does not make sense to Deputy Stagg. When one is in Opposition things do not make much sense. That is the job of the Opposition.
The Minister is leaving us in the dark about power cuts.
The Attorney General has advised the Government that the Bill to establish a regulator should be introduced to the Oireachtas quickly and priority has been given to it. That is how I intend to proceed.
There is currently a matter of dispute within the office of Commissioner Karel Van Miert in Brussels which will probably result in someone being fined an enormous amount of money for something which was done during the period before the liberalisation of the telecommunications network. The details of the case escape me but I do not wish to find myself in a similar situation. Either we are a member of the European Union or we are not. When I receive advice from the Attorney General I cannot ignore it.
The Minister is keeping us in the dark about power cuts.
And it will be all my fault.
Does the Minister have access to information from the industrial and domestic user sector to enable her identify precise future requirements? To what extent is the Minister acting on such information, if it is available?
I act on information supplied by the ESB. I have no other data.
Notwithstanding the information given by the ESB, does the Minister not have responsibility to access other data? Should the Minister not have an alternative and independent source of data?
The Minister could hire her own consultants.
We should not encourage her.
There is only one set of data and we work on that. One cannot make up data.
The ESB is, perhaps, undercooking the situation.
I think the ESB is overcooking it.
The Minister will be giving us a candle when we are in the dark.
Yes, and I will wear a big hat.
