Vol. 550 No. 4
310 Ms O. Mitchell asked the Minister for Finance the measures he intends to put in place to deal with barriers to the development of rural and local community-based windfarms and specifically those articulated by Meitheal na Gaoithe, such as fiscal barriers. [8584/02]
I am not aware of any fiscal barriers to the development of rural and local community-based windfarms. It should also be pointed out that the cost of the plant and machinery for windfarms, which accounts for the bulk of the expenditure on the project, can be written off over five years at 20% per annum. The case for some further tax relief for investment in renewable energy projects has to be examined in the context of the limits applied to other tax incentive schemes both in relation to the amount of tax relief available to each investor and the maximum tax relievable cost of the project itself. As the Deputy will appreciate, the Exchequer cost of any such relief is a key consideration. I should point out that I introduced an amendment to the 2002 Finance Bill on Report Stage to extend the qualifying period for the existing tax relief for corporate investment in renewable energy projects until 31 December 2004. This extension requires EU Commission approval under State aid rules and will therefore be subject to a commencement order.
