asked the Minister for Energy if he has any plans for the ending of the mandatory purchase of petrol from Whitegate oil refinery, County Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Whitegate Oil Refinery.
3.
The Programme for Government 1989-1993 states as follows:
The diseconomies of the existing oil refining and supply arrangements must be addressed. The new Government are committed to upgrading the Whitegate refinery with third party participation so that oil product consumers in Ireland, and notably business consumers, by the eventual removal of obligatory uptake, are not put at any disadvantage relative to overseas competitors.
Accordingly, efforts are continuing to attract investment interests to the Whitegate refinery with a view to introducing the technologies which will allow the facility to operate in a free market mode, and thus enable the policy of maintaining an operating refining capacity in this country, as an element of our energy security policy, under a mandatory provision, to be discontinued.
Will the Minister tell the House what progress, if any, has been made in an effort to upgrade the refinery at Whitegate?
That might be the subject of another question. If the Deputy waits for my reply to Question No. 6 I will deal with it then.
There are questions tabled in respect of that specific matter.
I will wait for the Minister's reply to Question No. 6. Can I take it from the Minister's reply that neither he nor the Government will discontinue the present obligation on oil companies to take one-third of their supplies from Whitegate until such time as the refinery is fully modernised and upgraded?
I can assure the Deputy that that is the position.