Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 January 2023
146. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Finance if he will outline the international tax guidelines for large-scale private investment funds that seek to invest in Ireland’s natural resources; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2982/23]
View answerI understand, following clarification from the Deputy’s office, that the Deputy is looking for further information on processes where a State body engages with investment from large-scale international private investors in our national strategic resources or infrastructure, with reference to recent reports of investments in Irish forestry.
Policy responsibility for the development of forestry in Ireland is within the remit of the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine and of course Coillte.
I understand that the issue referred by the Deputy arises in the context of the plan to expand forest cover in Ireland to meet climate change targets. In the context of this issue, I can outline the role of the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF). ISIF's statutory mandate is what it refers to as a “double bottom line” mandate of investing for a commercial return and investing to support economic activity and employment in Ireland. ISIF has disclosed that it is investing €25m in the referenced project. It is anticipated that this will form part of a wider €200m fund, which will acquire land from farmers and private landowners who wish to sell to the fund at market rates. ISIF has also informed me that its investment is part of both its Food & Agriculture and wider €1bn climate action investment programme, complementing its existing investments in forestry, renewable energy, energy efficiency and energy storage, and generating further progress in Ireland’s transition to a Net Zero economy. ISIF complies with all applicable laws including tax law. The tax treatment of the Fund is set out at note 6 on page 189 of the NTMA’s 2021 Annual Report, which is published on www.ntma.ie.
