Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 16 May 2024
224. Deputy James O'Connor asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his Department's plans to publish the final papers for the biomethane strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22221/24]
View answerA dedicated Biomethane Working Group, chaired by the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine, was established to oversee an all-of-government approach to developing a National Biomethane Strategy. The National Biomethane Strategy will set out a pathway to achieving CAP targets of producing 5.7 TWh of indigenous biomethane by 2030.
Following engagement with key stakeholders and industry experts, a Draft National Biomethane Strategy was developed. A public consultation was launched on 30 January 2024 on this Draft Strategy and the proposed roadmap to develop a biomethane industry of scale in Ireland. The public consultation received a total of 200 submissions. These submissions have been reviewed and feedback received has directly informed the final National Biomethane Strategy.
The large response rate to the public consultation demonstrates the high level of interest in a Biomethane industry in Ireland. In Ireland, the development of a biomethane industry is at a nascent stage of development but there is significant potential. Biomethane has the potential to displace fossil gas in many hard-to-decarbonise sectors and will play a significant role in enabling our transition to a net-zero economy, while also playing a significant role in the decarbonisation of Ireland’s agriculture sector.
It is my expectation that the Strategy will be ready for consideration by Government in the coming weeks ahead of subsequent publication.
