Vol. 496 No. 3
34 Dr. Upton asked the Minister for Public Enterprise if a project has been selected for the wave to energy pilot proposal for which funding to the amount of £1 million was provided under the alternative energy requirement programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22647/98]
I refer the Deputy to my reply to Parliamentary Question No. 235et al of 30 September 1998 in which I stated that I had informed WaveGen Ireland, the winning applicant, that the EIOP Monitoring Committee, which includes the European Commission, had decided not to provide grant assistance from the Economic Infrastructure Operational Programme for the wave energy station but that I was prepared to consider nominating the project to receive an offer of a power purchase agreement with the ESB at the bid price. The principals have raised some preliminary questions with my Department about the conditional offer. My Department expects to reply to the questions raised shortly.
I am concerned at the Minister's reply and that is why I tabled a question similar to the previous one to try to win the lottery of having it answered in the House.
This is the second proposal within the alternative industry programme proposed by the Government which has lost EU funding. There was a waste to energy proposal and then this innovative wind to energy proposal. Does the Minister of State agree there seems to be a less than energetic defence of the retention of funding for these proposals at EU level by his Department?
I share the Deputy's desire to proceed with wave energy. Like him, I am enamoured with the project. Ireland as an island nation is theoretically geared to the generation of electricity using wave energy. However, my inquiries have informed me that much needs to be done with the technology.
The assessment of the application to which the Deputy referred was conducted by ETSU whose report was submitted to the EIOP monitoring committee, which includes the European Commission. It supported the view expressed by its independent assessor that the wave project was more suited to a research and development programme, hence the suggestion that the technology needs to be improved. On that basis, the EIOP decided not to grant aid the programme.
That said, we offered the power purchase agreement to the winning applicant, WaveGen. That is now under consideration and I hope it will proceed to a satisfactory conclusion.
I welcome the offer the Minister of State has made to the winning entrant through the ESB for the power purchase agreement and it is to be hoped it can proceed. I accept his point about the technology being more in the area of research and development. Given that the wave energy off our coast is calculated to be sufficient to fill all our energy needs, does the Minister of State envisage or know of any programme in which research and development funds are available to develop this project from an Irish perspective?
We have examined that option and the response was that there needs to be a considerable improvement in technology. That is not to say we will leave it at that. I agree with Deputy Stagg regarding the meritorious nature of this mode of energy generation. As an island country, we are ideally positioned to proceed with it and I have discussed it with people on an ongoing basis. I hope the project will proceed. There were some legal aspects to the questions WaveGen asked us but we now have the answers and will reply to the group. Our response to the preliminary questions may generate others. Like the Deputy, I am anxious that the project proceeds and we will do all possible to ensure that happens.
Is it possible to find an alternative research budget to support the project? Some research has already been undertaken by universities which has indicated the desirability of the location for a station such as this.
Deputy Daly has raised this matter with me on a number of occasions. We will do all possible to further this mode of energy generation.
