Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 5 November 2013
628. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the action he will take to support and actively encourage the manufacturers of wind turbines to come here and to produce this type of equipment to utilise the opportunity to gain employment for persons here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46801/13]
View answerA key contributor to attracting manufacturing or assembly facilities to Ireland is the proposed pipeline of wind generation projects. In that regard, conscious of the need to meet our 2020 targets, and recognising the need for policy certainty on the part of developers, I implemented a number of changes to support scheme flexibility this year providing developers who are due to build post 2015 with the certainty they require on support scheme access. This has been a contributary factor in over 3,000 megawatts of wind generators accepting their Gate 3 offers to connect. This level of accepted offers and contracts being signed shows the commitment among generators to proceed with their projects, underpinned by the work of my Department. Separately, the Memorandum of Understanding signed with the United Kingdom on energy cooperation sent a strong signal of our shared interest in developing the opportunity to export green electricity from Ireland to Britain. An agreed programme of work to this end is underway with the ambition to settle on an Inter-Governmental Agreement in early 2014. A key objective, from an Irish Government perspective, is to realise the potential for investment, jobs and growth. The shift towards renewable energy and related technologies presents opportunities to develop new products across the information technology, remote communications and software sectors. A recent survey of IWEA member companies shows that some 3,400 people are in full time employment in the wind energy sector which will grow further as we progress towards our legally binding 2020 targets.
With regards to projects of a significant scale and specifically for export, employment creation arising from a 3 Gigawatt project would be expected to be in the order of 3,000 to 6,000 job years in the construction phase, with the actual number dependent on the construction schedule to 2020. There would also be additional jobs created in the on-going maintenance of turbines over a 20-year operating life.
However the combination of our potential domestic and export pipeline, provides an important signal to those looking to site a manufacturing or assembly plant. To maximise the employment potential, including the attraction of manufacturing or assembly facilities, all relevant State agencies, particularly in the enterprise area, will have to co-ordinate their activities early in the process to ensure we maximise the employment potential from wind generation development. This opportunity has already been identified by the IDA and Enterprise Ireland in their clean technology growth strategies.
