Electric Vehicle Programme.

Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 June 2009

Thursday, 18 June 2009

Questions (7, 8, 9)

Thomas P. Broughan

Question:

7 Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if he will fully report on the electric car programme; the person who has been appointed to the electric car advisory forum; the grounds on which his or her appointment was made; his estimate of when the network of charging points and related infrastructure necessary for a nationwide roll-out of electric cars will be built; if he is liaising with the ESB on this matter; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21277/09]

Seán Barrett

Question:

8 Deputy Seán Barrett asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the progress that has been made on securing a further memorandum of understanding with electric car manufacturers following the agreement with companies (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24100/09]

Richard Bruton

Question:

22 Deputy Richard Bruton asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the timeframe and structure for the rolling out of a charging infrastructure for electric cars agreed with the ESB; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24105/09]

Oral answers (5 contributions)

Deputy Eamon Ryan

I propose to answer Question Nos. 7, 8 and 22 together.

In conjunction with the Minister for Transport, I have announced plans for the large-scale deployment of electric vehicles in Ireland. The target of 10% of all vehicles to be powered by electricity by 2020 will equate to 250,000 cars on Irish roads.

The interdeparmental-interagency task force is chaired by my Department and comprises representatives from the Departments of Transport, Finance, the Environment, Heritage and Local Government and Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Sustainable Energy Ireland, SEI, the ESB, IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland. The membership of the task force was chosen to ensure a fully cohesive approach across Departments and agencies in the context of planning the development of electric transportation infrastructure. ESB Networks has a pivotal role to play in this process. While I consider the membership of the task force to be appropriate at this stage, I will keep under review the need to co-opt other expertise as matters progress.

The task force is developing the options and timeframe for putting in place the necessary infrastructure and other arrangements for the national roll-out of electric vehicles. Initial estimates for the roll-out of infrastructure indicate it will take between 12 and 18 months, depending on the scale of initial deployment. Global developments will be factored in as the technologies mature. The task force will shortly report its initial findings and advise on the next steps. Three working groups have been established under the aegis of the task force. These are the transport infrastructure, fiscal and enterprise groups. The work of these groups will inform the task force's main report. Employment opportunities, the costs involved in providing car-charging infrastructure and all associated issues, including funding options, will be addressed in the report.

The memorandum of understanding I recently concluded with Renault-Nissan will greatly increase the level of knowledge available on the infrastructure requirements of electric vehicles and ensure that Ireland has the opportunity to be one of the first countries to be supplied with both Renault and Nissan electric cars. This represents a major opportunity for Ireland. Under the memorandum of understanding, ESB Networks will be able to avail of data on developments in electric vehicles which will inform our consideration of optimum infrastructure, support mechanisms and the potential benefits accruing.

The memorandum of understanding does not convey any exclusive rights in respect of the provision of electric cars. Ireland is open for business to all manufacturers of electric vehicles and I hope to build relationships with all global players in the sector. I also hope to develop relationships with the ICT companies that will provide the data management and communications infrastructure that will be required.

Deputy Liz McManus

I thank the Minister for his reply but I must state he did not tell us a huge amount. When his Department issued a press release in respect of this matter, we were informed that a working group was to be established. I do not mean to nit-pick but this has metamorphosed into a task force to which three working groups are attached. That is a matter of concern because it appears there will be much deliberation but not many results. The press release issued by the Minister promised that the electric vehicles working group would publish its report in April but this clearly did not happen. When will that report be published?

The Minister did not indicate whether industry representatives are included in the membership of the task force. He stated the initial roll out will take between 12 to 18 months. What does this mean? How will the strategy relating to this matter actually work? A target of 10% has been set and a task force has been established. However, the nature of the strategy is unclear. What legislative requirements will be necessary to ensure the target is achieved?

In recent days it emerged that there is a real danger of electricity blackouts in Dublin as a result of insufficient capacity. Has the Minister, in conjunction with the ESB, given consideration to this matter in the context of the additional capacity that would be required to meet the target he has set in respect of the roll-out of electric vehicles?

Deputy Eamon Ryan

I do not have an exact date for the publication of the report. However, it will be issued shortly. I will provide the Deputy with a broad outline of what we envisage will happen over the first two years of the strategy. The first point to make is that the strategy is dependent on the availability of suitable vehicles. Nothing can be done until such vehicles become available. From listening to the companies, several hundred vehicles will become available by the end of next year. It will probably start towards the latter part of next year. By 2011 the figure should be around a couple of thousand as the scheme ramps up, depending on the level of vehicle availability from the manufacturers.

That will require roughly 1,500 power charging points, probably starting in the cities, concentrating in Dublin and the larger urban centres first, then rolling it out around the country. That presupposes the ability of any householder to have a simple plug-in connection so that he or she may charge from home. There will be widespread availability of charging facilities on a domestic basis, but we shall need to back that up in apartment blocks, car parks and on-street facilities as well as with a number of super charging points where within half an hour one might get an 80% charge, that will enable one, say, to get from Dublin to Cork. We shall need those at mid-points between our cities as the system evolves in the first year or two.

That is the first crucial development, having a countrywide, particularly urban, structure of power in place as well as the vehicles available from the manufacturers. In this regard we have the advantage, and now we know we have it. I mentioned that the whole ICT digital service area is behind this because we shall need fairly complex software. It needs to be an open access system in terms of being available for any vehicle manufacturer and as such is not exclusive. Also, down the line it will be supplier neutral in terms of the fact that different electricity supply companies will be able to sell through it — and that requires a good complex smart grid system.

Those are the bones of what I see happening in the next two years and what we learn and gain from that initiative we shall deploy very widely. There has been continuous questioning regarding the Dublin grid in terms of the volume of power supply being used in the city. However, there has been very significant investment in both the transmission and distribution network in Dublin and this is ongoing. The ESB is raising and spending significant capital on its network and other generation facilities. I am confident its involvement in this project is central to provide a co-ordinated response.

Deputy Simon Coveney

I thank the Minister, in particular, for his second response to the effect that we are certain to get more detail in respect of the electric car project. My view is that we need to take a field of dreams philosophy here, of "build it and they'll come" because people will not buy into electric cars until they see that this is a major State project for Ireland. We are transforming our transport fleet from carbon-based fuels to electricity. We have the capacity to do this in a dramatic way if the Minister is aggressively pushing this project. However, it will not be helpful if we take a cautious approach towards putting charging points in place between now and the end of 2011 of up to even 1,500. This is something that needs to be rolled out in a more ambitious manner and I encourage the Minister to be ambitious in that regard. I have a number of questions.

Are we seeking memorandums of understanding with other car manufacturers? I know that manufacturers other than Nissan-Renault are seeking to actively pursue the electric car market as well and we should ensure that consumers in Ireland will have choice. Are we seeking further memorandums of understanding in terms of charging points outside the ESB network? Again, that needs to be very much open to a tendering process and the benefits of competition.

Finally, are we consulting with the Northern Ireland Assembly about sharing this project to make it an all-island initiative? There are clear reasons why we should be doing that, in terms of developing the same type of transport system on the island of Ireland. The advantage of our being an island is that our cars primarily stay in Ireland, unlike many other European countries, which makes it easier for us to transform our transport fleet within a relatively short period of time, as long as we can get the cars.

Deputy Eamon Ryan

We are seeking memorandums of understanding with other manufacturers because crucially, car availability is the constraint. I fully agree with the Deputy. We should be ambitious in this regard and ahead of the curve as a country. In a sense we should be ahead of the people in providing facilities for them because I believe this will be enormously positive for the country.

We are also looking at memorandums of understanding with other supply system companies, in whatever format, while recognising crucially that in any supply system there has to be open access. It has to be something that different operators can switch in and out of.

I have to check the relationship the working group has with Northern Ireland. I believe we are ahead of the UK in this, in terms of what is being done there, but there is no reason why Northern Ireland and the Republic cannot synergise on this because of the obvious benefits to be derived from an all-island common approach, and I will support that.

This has to be something that also makes sense, economically. We will do whatever we can, in Government, to assist. We have already introduced tax breaks for fleet purchasers — advance capital allowances for anyone purchasing electric vehicles. We have given significant VRT and tax allowances for electric vehicles and people must have real security as regards those measures. There is a range of different measures we can employ in Government, but the Deputies can have my absolute commitment that it makes sense for us, not just on the transport side, but in terms of the back-up benefits that will accrue regarding the development of a smart grid, and as a location where some of the ICT technologies can progress — as well as for service solutions which can then be sold elsewhere.