Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 25 April 2023
237. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will outline the oversight role the Health and Safety Authority has in the context of lithium ion battery energy storage systems. [18994/23]
View answerThe regulatory agency with responsibility for batteries regulations in Ireland is the Environmental Protection Agency, which falls under the remit of my colleague the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications. Neither the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, or the Health and Safety Authority, has a statutory role for regulating the safety of batteries themselves. In workplaces with batteries present, the normal workplace risk assessment should consider any potential risks around the management, storage and handling of batteries specific to the workplace.
Under the Climate Action Plan 2023, the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications has committed to developing an Electricity Storage Policy Framework by Q3 2023. That Department recently held a consultation to inform the final framework. The consultation covered a broad range of issues, one of which was safety. The Department is now in the process of preparing the final Framework and is engaging closely with key stakeholders including Government Department, State agencies and industry experts regarding the issues raised during the consultation process, including safety standards for electricity storage projects.
