Climate Change Policy

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 7 July 2021

Wednesday, 7 July 2021

Questions (27, 28, 29, 31)

Carol Nolan

Question:

27. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the reason only 30% of the strand 2 projects with respect to the delivery of the 47 projects of the National Just Transition Fund of €27.8 million have received their final offer from his Department despite it being almost 12 months since applications were made and six months since the announcement of successful projects; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36603/21]

Carol Nolan

Question:

28. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the reason 70% of strand 2 projects as part of the National Just Transition Fund projects are not yet finalised and are not at contract stage; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36604/21]

Carol Nolan

Question:

29. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if concerns that a number of Just Transition projects in County Offaly have encountered difficulties in accessing match funding raising questions of the viability of these projects; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that without the secured match funding in place these projects cannot commence and that this is creating frustrations among the communities involved who were enthusiastic at the beginning of the process; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36605/21]

Carol Nolan

Question:

31. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if concerns will be addressed that Offaly County Council is not in a position to provide direct funding to any Just Transition Fund project for match funding; the measures he will take to address these concerns; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36607/21]

Written answers

Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications

I propose to take Questions Nos. 27, 28, 29 and 31 together.

The objective of the Just Transition Fund is to support innovative projects that contribute to the economic, social and environmental sustainability of the Midlands region, and which have employment and enterprise potential.

My Department held a competitive call for applications to this Fund last year, in response to which over 100 applications were received. Provisional offers were made to 63 projects, of which 34 have concluded funding agreements with my Department. Further information on these projects is available on www.gov.ie/en/publication/ed10d-just-transition-fund.  Remaining projects are currently at the final stages of verification and the majority of these projects are expected to have grant agreements in place by the end of July.

A number of projects which received provisional offers were at an early conceptual stage and required further development support by officials in my Department to structure projects in a way which aligns with the fund's requirements. In addition, significant time has been committed by my Department in engaging directly with individual projects to facilitate an open dialogue with project applicants to support them through this process.

As set out in the Department’s information booklet for its call for applications, all projects must include a minimum of 15% matching funding from sources other than the Just Transition Fund; that is the Fund will provide support up to a maximum of 85% of the project costs, subject to project compliance with state-aid rules. Matching funding is the responsibility of individual projects to source and may be in the form of a combination of other Exchequer-funded schemes and/or State-sector expenditure, Local Authority investment and/or land, EU funding sources, community investment, philanthropic contributions, private-sector investment, or other asset contributions. Where state aid rules apply, the Department is working directly with all affected projects to support them in fulfilling the relevant requirements.