Is é an chéad duine atá i láthair ná an Teachta Ó Murchú.
Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions
Question No. 77 taken with Written Answers.
Wind Energy Generation
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Question:78. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications in relation to offshore wind, when the individual parts of the planning-led system, including designated maritime area plans, DMAPs, will be made publicly available; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28755/23]
I am looking for a timeline and information as to when the planning-led system in respect of offshore wind will be completely in place. I refer to the entire framework, including all of the individual parts and the DMAPs. We are moving from one system to another and the stakeholders involved in possible proposals for offshore wind projects are not entirely sure where they will be able to build, propose projects or anything like that. We need that delivered as soon as possible.
The national marine planning framework was adopted by the Government in 2021 as Ireland's first marine spatial plan. Later in 2021, the Maritime Area Planning Act was enacted.
Under the Maritime Area Planning Act, a new maritime area consent, MAC, regime for offshore energy projects was developed over the course of 2022 by my Department. I awarded MACs to seven phase-one projects in December 2022. I have already welcomed the provisional results of the first offshore wind auction under the renewable electricity support scheme, ORESS 1, which surpassed expectations. More than 3 GW of capacity has been procured from four offshore wind projects, which will deliver over a quarter of the projected 2030 electricity demand. It is enough to power more than 2.5 million Irish homes with clean electricity and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by over 1 million tonnes in 2030.
The Government approved the policy statement on the framework for phase two offshore wind in March this year. The Government's commitments on offshore renewable energy, set out in the phase two policy statement, were approved by the Dáil on 24 May. Within phase two, auction participants will compete for supports to develop offshore wind within offshore renewable energy designated maritime area plans, DMAPs. The process for establishing a DMAP is provided for in the Maritime Area Planning Act. The location of phase two DMAPs will be geographically aligned with available onshore grid capacity identified by EirGrid. A south coast DMAP is being developed by my officials, in collaboration with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, which will be published this summer. This transition to a plan-led approach will expedite future delivery of offshore wind, while ensuring that development is managed in a planned, strategic and sustainable way.
What we all want here is a fit-for-purpose system. I think we all buy into the idea of a planning-led, rather than a developer-led, approach. It is about ensuring that we have all the parts in play. There is a secondary question that I will put to the Minister in relation to any future auctions or whatever. As I said, we need to make sure we meet those targeted timelines in relation to delivering the DMAPs so people are aware of the area of operations. As regards tendering for projects, will we be taking into account anything beyond the cost price, as important as that is? Will we be taking into account community interaction and, even beyond that, the ability to deliver the project? At this point in time, does it look like we are heading towards being able to hit the target of producing 7 GW by 2030?
I believe we can, and will. It is not just 2030 that is the key milestone. The reality is that the real big prize is a significant development on the west, north-west and south-west coasts, in our sea areas and sometimes our land areas, where we have some of the highest wind speeds in the world. The development of these coasts is very important. We need that to help power our economy and our country, and to help lower the cost of energy. It is very welcome that we now have greater clarity that the auction process works and that we can go further. The biggest constraint, in much of this, is environmental planning. Environmental planning is very complex. We do not have a strong record in that area in this country historically. We have not put sufficient resources into the National Parks and Wildlife Service, NPWS. In Europe, we were rightly held up for not having all the required designated wildlife areas on land and at sea. The process is still ongoing and we have to manage the development of offshore winds within that. Often, there are complex competing objectives in terms of maritime environmental protection, climate advance and so on. I believe we can get that right. As we ramp up the NPWS and start to take our environment and the designation of areas within that much more seriously, that will allow us to meet the big long-term objectives.
I agree our planning concerns have not exactly been where they should have been over many years. We need to make sure we have all the resources necessary to ensure we have the correct oversight. Another question has been raised again in relation to planning. We all know the planning difficulties we have across the board. Are we going to have sufficient resources not only in the maritime area regulatory authority, MARA, but also in An Bord Pleanála, to make sure there is not a hold up from the point of view of the State. We are all aware checks and balances are needed, but we also need to be able to deliver on big projects if we have any chance of delivering across the board. There are also wider questions to be answered. The Minister should feel free to correct me, but are we talking about the DMAPs and everything across the board being published by the end of the summer? Is that it? It is about making sure we have those pieces in place and that the ports are up the spec to be able to deliver. Beyond that, we need to ensure An Bord Pleanála is resourced and that we have the required grid infrastructure. We must be sufficiently imaginative, because we know we can change the energy map for Europe. We all know the advantages of that from a climate change and energy security point of view.
I know from hearing from the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage today that quite a lot of resources are being put into trying to tackle those planning uncertainties. However, it remains a concern, as Deputy Ó Murchú said. I also want to ask about the position in relation to ports and whether we are capable of supporting the offshore development. Where are we on developing a strategy to respond to what is criticism from the sector of our preparedness on that front?
We are not alone in this complex issue. When I talk to my German, Dutch, Belgium and British colleagues, I note that every one of them faces the similar constraint issue. They also have the issue of the optimisation of various competing environmental objectives. The European Commission increasingly recognises that. We have to optimise where we develop offshore wind and ensure the wider environment is protected. I think we can do that.
The development of offshore wind will be really good for the restoration of the maritime areas. Taking the Irish Sea, for example, we have destroyed the Irish Sea over many decades with the loss of fishing stocks, mussel and oyster beds. Looking at what has been lost in the Irish Sea, the restoration of wind power will see the restoration of the environment of the ecosystems in the Irish Sea, as well as in other waters. There are six institutional areas where we have to increase and invest to be able to get this right. We have started this work in my Department since Deputy Bruton's time there. It is no criticism of the Deputy when he was Minister, but the Department has doubled in size in the intervening period. There is a recognition in government, as there was in the previous one, that it takes time for this to ramp up. We have doubled in scale and in the energy area, in particular, the work has been scaled up significantly. An Bord Pleanála is fully resourced and fully complemented. If any request is made by An Bord Pleanála for further resources, I will be the first in government to insist that they are they are provided.
To finish the point, I could say the same for MARA, NPWS, EirGrid and a range of different agencies. The constraint is often not so much in budget or Government commitment. As so many people are now working and interested in this area, the challenge is to get good people who are going into the private sector as well as into the public sector. Our biggest challenge is not the money, but getting the people.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Richard Bruton
Question:79. Deputy Richard Bruton asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications how does he assess the exclusion of 9 million tonnes of GHG abatement measures in the climate plan from the Environmental Protection Agency's recent projections for emissions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28680/23]
This issue came up earlier in priority questions. The Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, has recently reported that it cannot include in its modelling up to 9 million tonnes of GHG abatement measures in the Government climate action plan. As a result, it is predicting that we will fall significantly short of our target for 2030. I would be interested to hear the Minister comment on how we can realise those 9 million tonnes.
I will not repeat the written response I read earlier. More widely, we live in a time when people are naturally very concerned. Looking at what is happening in the global weather climate system at present, there is much real concern at the dramatic increase, outside any historic precedent, of the temperatures in the north Atlantic. The ongoing degradation of the Antarctic and Arctic ice sheets is cause for real fear and concern. It highlights the need for dramatic scaled-up action on climate. Sometimes we wonder if, God almighty, we are beyond salvation here, and if we will be able to meet these targets not just nationally but internationally.
Two or three things give me some sense of real purpose and hope. First, the renewable technologies that are the cornerstone of the energy solution, which is a key part of the problem, are starting to be developed and deployed at a scale and speed that we have not seen before, particularly the development of solar and wind power. Indeed, 90% of the new energy generation in the globe this year is going to be renewable. The scale of development of solar energy, in Ireland as well as elsewhere, is going beyond anything people expected. I think we may bust the modelling there, and go beyond what people have foreseen.
To give an example, Irish people are defying expectations in terms of what we can do on retrofitting our homes. The Deputy may have read an article in the Financial Times two weeks ago which cited the example of Ireland as best in case, best practice and the best example in Europe of the development of retrofitting. I was at a major International Energy Agency conference on energy efficiency last week. The chairs and chief executives of some of the biggest energy companies in Europe were on the platform and said Ireland was an example. I know there are areas where we are not fast enough but there are some where we are seeing real progress. I could continue but I want to make the point that we should be very careful that we do not fall into the trap of people giving up or being so terrified by what they see in the climate science of what is happening that we despair and do not double down to deliver what is working in many areas. We can and will do this. It is the way the world is going and we can and will be good at it.
I agree with the Minister. Some of the deployment of these technologies is proving very effective. The big bombshell in the report was on the land use front. The flexibility that had been available to us of 26 million tonnes has dropped to 9 million tonnes as a result of a reassessment of the impact of land use on emissions. Land use, even with the 8,000 ha of forestry planting and the rewetting of 80,000 acres, will only contribute in a tiny way to our emissions. This is a source of concern. We do not seem to have the policy tools in place to address land use. What is the Minister's assessment of the challenge in the land use area?
It is very challenging because it is very complex. In response to an earlier question I made the point that there is good news from Brussels today in that the European environment committee has voted through the nature restoration law. I expect that at the Council meeting next Tuesday, when we will be there representing the Irish position, it will also go through. It will then go through a trial-like process to be agreed by the end of the year. This is important. Any influence that Deputy Bruton has on his EPP colleagues for them to support it in the wider parliamentary plenary vote later this summer would be very much welcomed. Such European certainty will help us.
The reason land use is so complex is because it changes. Last year we learned the impact on land use emissions of forestry on peaty soils. This is one such example. On Monday at the break-out session on this issue at the national economic dialogue, there was widespread agreement from the farming representatives, environmental NGOs and others on what has happened in the NESC secretariat. It has been engaging in a process of listening. Agreeing principles on how we manage land use, protect the family farm and stop water pollution are examples of the right way to go. What the Government will do for the remaining 20 months in office is to engage in that level of listening and local bottom-up analysis as to how this can benefit rural Ireland. Land use has to be about restoring and strengthening rural communities. Out of this we will see support for the levels of diversification that will deliver on the targets.
Does the Minister agree that if we read the climate action plan we see tremendous uncertainty on land use? We are speaking about a likely target of 11 million tonnes of emissions in 2030 and a 66% reduction in prospect. This is the target the EU suggests. Where are the policy tools that could conceivably explain to communities how such a 66% reduction could be achieved? Are we creating the uncertainty the Minister rightly says fouls the atmosphere of debate? There are a lot of achievements but if we create great uncertainty in one area will we not undermine the capacity to see a realistic pathway? Does the Minister agree that we need to see early movement on carbon farming as a key element of this and on people getting rewarded for changes?
I agree with this. It is exactly in line with what I was saying. We cannot be punitive or point the finger. It has to be remunerated, supported and voluntary. I will give several more examples. An area where I see real progress is in the work done by Bord na Móna and others on State land where we are rewetting up to 30,000 ha. We will do this in the lifetime of the Government. Bord na Móna is using the same skills it developed over the years. It is happening and it is working. It goes beyond what anyone has been speaking about in the nature restoration law in terms of targets. It is a real possibility.
The other key policy lever is the implementation of the new forestry programme that was agreed by the Government. It has a €1.3 billion budget behind it. To show the complexity of this, and it is complex, our biggest challenge has been getting it through the European Commission and getting its support for it. It has conflicting objectives in terms of the birds and habitats directives. Unfortunately it is very complex. We need to act and deliver on the forestry programme and scale up forestry way beyond anything that has done before. This more than anything else requires local knowledge. Real skill will be involved in getting this right so we plant the right tree in the right place. We need to protect our other nature services and systems while, at the same time, we deliver new native and natural woods and the variety of woods that we will need. What is most important is to get agreement from the European Commission on state aid rules on the forestry programme so we step in the right direction.
Question No. 80 taken with Written Answers.
Energy Policy
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Question:81. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if the results of the geothermal study conducted at Carlinn Hall have been received; when he plans to make them available; the next steps in finalising a lasting solution for the residents; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28754/23]
This is a question I have been trying to ask for a considerable amount of time. It relates to the Carlinn Hall housing estate in Dundalk. We all know the difficulties that have arisen with communal heating systems, particularly when they are gas powered. A geothermal study has been carried out and I would like an update on where that is, when it will be published and the next steps to be able to deliver a proper solution.
In fairness to Deputy Ó Murchú he has been very assiduous and diligent on following this issue. The SEAI-led national heat study found that district heating can deliver enough decarbonised heat to meet a significant portion of Ireland's renewable heat targets. In this context district heating schemes are large-scale systems that are supplied by one or several centralised or decentralised heat sources and serve multiple buildings and multiple customers. This is a new concept to Ireland.
Group or communal heating schemes such as Carlinn Hall, and earlier Deputy Bacik mentioned some in her constituency, are smaller-scale systems that typically supply single buildings or complexes. In light of the issues faced by such group schemes an independent consultancy was commissioned by the SEAI to complete a report on the viability of retrofitting an existing communal heating system with a shallow geothermal energy source using Carlinn Hall as the case study.
The report will be provided in two parts. Recommendations will be made on heat network efficiency, options for a low-carbon heat alternative and the costs of installation and operation. The final draft of this initial element is due for review by the project steering group and is expected to be completed within the next month. The second part will extract the main learning on heat network decarbonisation in Ireland. This part is expected to be completed by the end of the summer.
I understand the report is behind schedule due to the complexity of assessing low-carbon technology applications for group heating schemes in an Irish context. In a short number of weeks we will have it and we will publish and share it. I hope we will put it to good use in many buildings where we can implement the solutions.
It goes without saying that we need this work done as assiduously as possible, particularly from the point of view of finding a solution that will work. There is a problem with these communal heating systems particularly when they are gas fed. We need to look at legislative change. I would like to find out when the task force or working group will come out with its set of recommendations. We do not want to recreate the situation. There are a number of apartment complexes in Dublin. There are 200 homes in Carlinn Hall. When the price of gas went through the roof people paid extortionate amounts and that is not viable.
We need those sorts of solutions. They will most likely be delivered by third parties. We need to make sure we have the grant schemes and everything else in place. I know the Minister does not want to jump the gun but are we looking at this review that is being carried out being relatively positive and maybe having a possible solution?
I will have to wait for the completion of the report. I do not want to second-guess it. The independent group has to conclude its work. As I said, there is a distinction, which we discussed earlier, between group central heating systems and district heating. We will, in all likelihood, need both. In my mind, the real large-scale development is on the district heating side. The real benefit there is that a waste product is used and turned into a useful resource. It is common across many European jurisdictions. It has not been developed here but we need to scale that up. We need to learn lessons where there are schemes. I remember Carlinn Hall as an example. I think I was there at the very start of the project when I was formerly Minister responsible for energy. The report would be useful not just for that facility but to make sure we do not have a situation where householders are caught out if, for example, the gas markets skyrocket, there is no flexibility, and it goes straight off the market price. We have to learn lessons from what happened.
I agree. We have all seen district heating systems and the idea of using waste heat from big industrial operations. That is a definite win. The problem with these is that they were communal heating systems that were obviously fed initially by biomass and, for multiple reasons, possibly even planning laws and so on, which all need to be looked at and which I have corresponded with the Minister on, they were moved to gas. From an environmental point of view, it was a complete disaster and, from a cost point of view, it has become a nightmare. We need this SEAI report as soon as possible. We need to see what the possibilities are.
We also need to make sure there are grant schemes that can deliver because, at the end of the day, the Minister is talking about a management company and residents having to try to get agreement and having to engage a third party to put in this solution. We need to make sure we have all the parts in place to facilitate people who are willing to do whatever is necessary, because obviously what is happening at the minute is not sustainable. We need rules to make sure we do not have these disaster communal heating systems being fed by gas and more being built, because I hear that is happening.
We have to be careful. There are real benefits and advantages to many communal heating systems. I was at the SEAI energy show a number of months ago. It was interesting to see how it is evolving, including new ground-sourced and air-sourced heat pumps. A whole range of different technological innovations are happening.
That is fine.
There can be real benefits from communal heating systems as well as from district heating. We just have to make sure-----
These types of systems, obviously.
If there are particular circumstances where market price volatility really seems to be shooting up, I think communal heating systems as well as district heating can be designed in a way that gives some of that stability. We have to be careful we do not throw the baby out with the bathwater. There are real benefits of communal heating systems. We just need to get the design and technology right so that there are not any price shocks for householders. There will always be variability. Sometimes that can be on the positive side. When market prices were very low, there could be real benefits, but nobody wants high energy price shocks and we have to look at how we design that out of any future contracts and systems.
Questions Nos. 82 and 83 taken with Written Answers.
Electricity Grid
Darren O'Rourke
Question:84. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications what additional measures are being taken by the Government to ensure our grid has the capacity to accommodate the required increase in connections; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28915/23]
What additional measures are being taken by the Government to ensure our grid has the capacity to accommodate the required increase in connections to manage the energy transition? Will the Minister make a statement on the matter?
Work is under way on a number of initiatives in this vein as outlined in Climate Action Plan 2023, CAP23. That plan includes a commitment to carry out a public consultation on private wires, and a deadline for publication of quarter 4 of 2023 has been set. The policy area of private wires is broad in nature and, as such, detailed consideration must go into formulating the consultation to ensure all aspects of the policy area are considered. Publishing a consultation and, ultimately, providing a clear policy position on the issue of private wires is a priority for me. Work on this policy area is ongoing in my Department, with my officials engaging directly in recent months with interested stakeholders as part of the consultation formulation process.
Also under CAP23, my Department has committed to developing an electricity storage policy framework by quarter 3 of this year. A consultation was held early in the year, which closed on 27 January, and the responses are currently being analysed. My Department is now in the process of preparing the final framework and is engaging closely with key stakeholders, including Departments, State agencies and industry experts regarding the issues raised during the consultation process.
A hydrogen strategy for Ireland is also being developed, with an anticipated completion deadline of the second quarter of 2023. This strategy will set out the need for a robust safety and regulatory framework to be in place as well as the need to ensure licensing and permitting procedures are in place to enable sustainable indigenously produced green hydrogen supply chains to develop.
The Minister has spoken about private wires, the storage policy framework and the hydrogen strategy. The private wires consultation has been a long time coming. It could not happen quickly enough. In his first supplementary response, will the Minister address the capacity and resourcing of EirGrid as a vehicle to deliver on this ambition in the first instance? I regularly meet stakeholders. The Minister, like me and many others, will attend conferences on the opportunity presented by renewables, offshore wind and onshore wind. A number of other Deputies touched on some other themes, including ports and the planning system. The grid comes up time and again, including the capacity in the system, especially of EirGrid, to deliver on the ambition. We have Shaping our Electricity Future and we expect Shaping our Electricity Future 1.1 soon, it is hoped. There is a hope and expectation that the ambition will be even greater there. Will EirGrid be fit to deliver on it?
I met EirGrid, the ESB and the Commission for Regulation of Utilities recently. Therefore, this issue is at the top of our agenda and minds at the moment. The Deputy is right that the grid is key in this transformation. Having a flexible grid of a sufficient scale is vital. I will pick out three examples of what we are learning from that. First, I have huge confidence in EirGrid. We have given it the task of developing the offshore grid. It will need to be resourced and given the financial capability to deploy that. Many policies will go to Government and come out in the next month. One will be our interconnection policy. We are building two interconnectors at the moment. We will build more to the UK, France and beyond. That is significant and requires significant investment.
We also have to focus on ESB Networks, particularly because it is not just about the big interconnection and transmission grid. We have to look right at the street and how we put in new storage facilities at the local transformer station. Critically, we have to work with the Data Protection Commissioner so that we have good sharing of data and have real public confidence in the use of that non-identifying data about collective use on the street so that we can start switching on and off devices and give ourselves real capability at the distribution grid level.
EirGrid's strategy for capacity and workforce planning was last published in line with the Climate Action Plan 2019, which the former Minister, Deputy Bruton, published. It is somewhat out of date and EirGrid is to come with a new strategy in the not-too-distant future. Like Shaping our Electricity Future 1.1, I hope it will have increased ambition and that it will have a plan to resource and deliver on that increased ambition. Does the Minister have a comment on that? Private wires is an issue for flexibility.
The consultation is welcome, but when does the Minister expect it to be concluded? When will we have a new regulatory and policy environment in place?
I expect it to be concluded before the end of this year. I will have to come back to the Deputy on exactly how long it will take to put in the regulatory systems.
I will finish on the third point I was going to raise, which addresses the Deputy's question, in a sense. It comes out of recent conversations with EirGrid on its shaping of our electricity 2.0, as it were. Very good work has been done by EirGrid on that. One of the ways the electricity system is evolving, and we saw this during the offshore auctions, is around the risk of constraint or curtailment. When we have so much renewable power, what do we do when there is surplus power? I now believe the management of that risk, cost or price should not lie with the developer but with the State, EirGrid, the ESB and how we use that power. By the end of this decade, with the developing solar, offshore wind and onshore wind projects we know we will deliver, we will have a significant surplus of electricity. We need to design the system so we can convert that into new business, industrial or other decarbonising opportunities. We are one of the countries ahead of the game in that. We have probably the highest level of renewable variable power on an integrated synchronistic system. One of the key issues we have is thinking about how we use our surplus power. We know those projects will be there by the end of the decade and designing the end use to benefit from that will be part of the shaping of the electricity future we need to design.
Question No. 85 taken with Written Answers.
Offshore Renewable Energy Development Plan
David Stanton
Question:86. Deputy David Stanton asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications to outline the measures being taken by his Department to facilitate offshore wind energy development; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28879/23]
Will the Minister outline the measures taken by his Department to facilitate offshore wind energy development, in particular, floating wind? As part of his response, will he give us an outline of what is happening with regard to ports? That was asked earlier but I do not think the Minister got a chance to respond. The Minister's pronouncements here and elsewhere have a major impact on the confidence of investors who are looking to invest in Ireland. That is a very important point to make.
Significant work has been undertaken over the past two years to develop the regulatory framework to enable the construction and operation of offshore wind farms and associated infrastructure. The national marine planning framework was adopted by the Government in May 2021 and is Ireland’s first marine spatial plan. The Maritime Area Planning, MAP, Act was enacted in December 2021 and established the legislative foundation for the new marine planning system. Under the MAP Act, a new maritime area consent, MAC, regime for offshore wind projects was developed by my Department. I issued the first MACs for seven phase 1 offshore projects in December last year. In addition, the new maritime area regulatory authority, MARA, will be established in July to assess planning applications for offshore development. MARA will have sole authority for granting further MACs for all future marine infrastructure required to deploy offshore wind energy.
Yesterday, EirGrid announced the final results of the first offshore wind auction, offshore renewable energy support scheme, ORESS 1, which will deliver more than 3 GW of offshore wind energy as a cheap, sustainable and secure indigenous alternative to imported fossil fuels. The successful phase 1 projects with MACs will progress through the planning system. After securing planning permission from An Bord Pleanála, the developers will commence offshore wind farm construction and deployment, which will become operational in the latter part of this decade. Further progress across all elements required to accelerate delivery of a sustainable offshore wind energy sector is being driven by my Department under the offshore wind delivery task force.
I will reference some specific examples of that. This task force is pulling all the various elements together. One of the key areas is the deployment and delivery of wind turbines at ports in addition to the industrial development opportunity that will arise. I was very pleased to visit the Port of Cork recently to see its incredible new facility. There is a very large container port system in Ringaskiddy and it, along with other locations in Cork and elsewhere, is a development where we could further enhance port infrastructure and have the necessary place for deployment of the wind industry. I was very encouraged by my visit to the Port of Cork, which is well placed to deliver on that, as well as other locations in Cork and elsewhere. It gives me confidence that we can get this built in time and, in that way, further enhance investor and public confidence in what we are doing.
Can the designated marine area maps, DMAPs, for phase 3 be run in parallel with those for phase 2 and, if not, why not? Will the Minister confirm whether any human resources have been dedicated to progressing phase 3 at this time? Those are two clear questions. Is there a specific workstream for phase 3 within the offshore wind task force? What about wet storage, which is the storing of unfinished turbines before assembly, or a finished turbine, before they are moved to the wind farm site? Will the Minister outline plans for that? Will he confirm whether floating offshore wind off County Cork and Shannon will be prioritised and how?
We will publish the DMAP for phase 2 this summer and move towards delivering the parameters of the auction by the end of this year. The auction will start early next year. There is likely to be a second phase 2 to make sure we meet the full 2030 targets. At the same time, and there will be no real delay, the next iteration after that will be the move towards the enduring regime and future framework. Our Department is working flat out on that.
To answer the Deputy's question, we see the development of floating offshore as a significant part of the opportunity for Ireland. I recently attended a major global offshore floating wind energy conference in Nantes. I had the great pleasure of meeting many of those working in the industry, including developers and companies involved in that. It is starting to scale up in other jurisdictions. It will have a critical role in Ireland because, as we go into the deeper waters, especially further west and in the north west and south west, we will be going beyond the depths at which fixed-bottom offshore can be done. That will be a critical part of the future.
I am tight on time. None of the issues related to wet storage are technical. Much of that will be answered in the Shannon Estuary task force plan that is due. We will work with the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Coveney, on a similar approach for the Port of Cork, where we will look at it on a very strategic basis.
I thank the Minister for his response, which will be noted by many investors who are really looking to Ireland and want confidence on this matter. With that in mind, does the Minister accept the need for greater engagement between the Government and industry? How will the offshore wind task force facilitate input from industry, specifically on floating offshore wind? The Minister might come back to me on plans for wet storage. It is very important that be clarified because a lot of work is to be done in that regard. We need to get all these parts in line. The Minister mentioned the offshore grid and EirGrid being given responsibility for it. Will private industry have any role in that?
To go further into the issue of wet storage, the Deputy will be aware that Shannon Foynes Port Company commissioned a report by the Bechtel group, which is a major international consultancy house on engineering and design. That report should demonstrate the need, when working with offshore floating wind, depending on weather windows and a standardised production schedule, for a location where the turbines can be stored floating in the sea, with their concrete or steel foundations in place. Bechtel will set out exactly how that could and should be done at the Shannon Estuary. As I said, we need to do a similar exercise for the Port of Cork.
The analysis and work we need to do is not just about the deployment out. It is also about focusing on what we do with the power when it comes in. I emphasised those two locations because the Shannon Estuary, with Aughinish Alumina, Irish Cement, Shannon Airport, Tarbert and Moneypoint nearby, already has very extensive brownfield energy infrastructure which can be used in this new way with this new energy coming ashore. Similarly, the Port of Cork is near Whitegate Refinery, power generation locations, pharmaceutical industries and the former nitrates site at Marino Point, which are areas that have historically had major energy infrastructure. We need to think about not just wet storage but what we do with the power when it comes ashore. That is as important as the deployment outwards of the energy.
Post Office Network
Holly Cairns
Question:87. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the steps he is taking to support rural post offices. [28552/23]
I ask the Minister to outline the steps being taken to support rural post offices.
I thank the Deputy for this important question. An Post is a commercial State body with a mandate to act commercially. An Post has statutory responsibility for the State’s postal service and the post office network. In addition, Irish post offices are typically independent businesses run by postmasters. Decisions relating to the network, including those relating to the size, distribution and future thereof, are operational matters for the board and management of the company.
The Government is committed to a sustainable An Post and post office network as a key component of the economic and social infrastructure of Ireland. The company fully understands the Government position and a sustainable, viable and customer-focused post office network is a key strategic priority for the company.
My Department is providing funding of €10 million per annum from within its existing capital provision over a three-year fixed term, 2023-2025, to An Post to support a sustainable, nationwide post office network in line with the commitment in the programme for Government. The funding provides time and space for An Post to accelerate the transformation and commercialisation of the network to ensure a relevant, commercially viable network delivering more services to citizens and small businesses.
The Government recognises the importance of the high quality post office network to our citizens across the country, as well as the central and trusted role of postmasters in our communities. An Post, including through the post office network, provides important services to its customers and is contracted to provide key Government services to citizens. An Post will continue actively to seek new business and explore opportunities to develop new or enhanced product lines for the network.
Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit. Everyone can understand what he says about size, distribution and so on, but it does not take into consideration the importance of post offices, particularly in rural areas, in providing financial independence to many people and vulnerable groups, older people and people with disabilities, in terms of paying bills and accessing their own finances. In addition to that is the profound impact when a post office leaves a small town or village. It is often part of the heart of a community and when that is gone it is another rundown, derelict building and it means people have to travel to other urban centres to do things like their day-to-day business of paying bills.
An Post is one of the best run services in the country. My small family business relies on An Post. We post orders every day and, almost without fail, an Irish customer will receive their order the next day. It is an exemplary service. A reduction in the number of post offices in different areas is a massive mistake and will be reflected on as such in the future. When we have to reduce our travel, consider the environment and all of those things, to make crucial services more centralised is incredibly short-sighted. What protections are there for smaller areas to keep their post offices or reintroduce them in areas that have lost them?
The €10 million per annum is there to provide stabilisation and support and to underpin that key social, economic and community infrastructure in towns and villages across the country. In the absence of that Government decision and the commitment in the programme for Government to provide that support to post offices, we would have a greater difficulty. The State has stepped in to help stabilise that. The Deputy is correct that they provide a vital service in our communities. Through the pandemic we saw the essence of that. Our postmasters and post offices provided incredible community support and were a focal point of the community response.
The funding agreed is €10 million over three years. We are ambitious to help An Post broaden the number of services available so that we can enhance viability. It also has a plan for the overall transformation and commercialisation of the network so it is commercially viable and supports services for citizens and small businesses in towns and villages. We share the objective the Deputy spoke of.
The €10 million per annum is very welcome. Everybody recognises that. Does the Minister of State recognise it is too little, too late for the ones that have closed? It is harder to reopen something after it has closed but is there recognition that they were a vital part of the community that should never have gone? Does the Minister of State have an ambition to reopen those post offices in areas where people do not have them any more? The impact of that is still being felt, particularly by older people in rural areas and people with disabilities who cannot easily access other towns and villages, particularly in the absence of suitable public transport for many disabled people.
I bring to the attention of the Minister of State reports that An Post intends to close a number of sorting offices in east Cork, which will mean people will have to travel long distances in their cars to collect post. It is a retrograde step. I know it is an An Post decision but maybe the Minister of State can bring that view to the management of An Post.
I thank both Deputies. The €10 million per year will make a difference to those who perhaps were thinking of exiting as independent postmasters. Providing that stabilisation will enhance the network. In certain areas, there was consolidation. In other villages, there was an exit of a post office. We have to try to maintain the network, and the €10 million will do that, as a key component of the economic and social infrastructure of the country.
On Deputy Stanton’s point, decisions relating to the network of post and sorting offices, including decisions relating to size, distribution and the future of the offices, are operational matters. There is proactive engagement between An Post and the trade unions on all matters relating to the sorting offices. It is important in any decisions made that there is a partnership approach between all parties involved. That is how An Post is approaching these matters.
Climate Change Policy
Fergus O'Dowd
Question:88. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications his views on the recently published report by the EPA that Ireland is set to miss out on its 2030 climate targets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28040/23]
The Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, report states Ireland will fall well short of its climate change targets. The expected reduction was 51% by 2030; it is now expected to be 29%. Significant new efforts need to be made. When does the Minister intend to introduce a new low-interest loan to help owners of domestic dwellings or people residing in them who do not qualify for free retrofit to be able to retrofit their homes and reduce their energy costs, which are rising appallingly high?
We intend to introduce it before the end of this year. It is taking longer than we wanted, mainly because the European Investment Bank is a key partner and it is the first time it has engaged in direct consumer-related lending. We had to change the structure of it to facilitate its concerns.
I will make a wider point. We discussed at length in earlier questions how we go further to meet our climate targets and close the gap. I will give two examples to give people a sense of what is possible. One area for which the Government has hopes, though it will have to deliver policy initiatives to make this happen, is as follows. Among the changes in the world contributing to decarbonisation is a huge ramp-up in heat pumps in homes and industry. There is a real opportunity for us to switch any industry using gas for heating at relatively low temperatures – anything below 120°C – towards using heat pumps. That is an area where we can go beyond what is in the modelling. The second example would turn a challenge into an opportunity by developing facilities here to produce cross-laminated timber and radically scale up the ability for fast modular, offsite, timber-frame construction housing using such timber. In such industrial development policy areas, I believe we can go beyond what is in the existing modelling, which is not in the EPA projections, and deliver on the change.
The real story regarding domestic retrofitting is that this area, as the EPA acknowledged, is working. We are seeing an incredible increase in demand for the one-stop-shop schemes, home retrofitting and the grant. We need the loan facility to add to that and make sure everyone can access the financing needed to avail of the grants. Retrofitting is ahead of expectation and target.
It might well be but I am getting complaints from people who have installed heat pumps and cannot pay the electricity costs. That is why the Minister has to look at other solutions as well.
I welcome his commitment to low-interest loans. Perhaps he could accelerate the process in order that households that are being crucified by energy bills will be able to meet or reduce them, at the very least.
I absolutely agree with the Deputy. I met my officials about this issue yesterday. We are confident we can deliver a scheme in the autumn to meet the gap the Deputy has mentioned. I look forward to delivering that.
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