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Climate Action Plan

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 June 2020

Tuesday, 23 June 2020

Ceisteanna (628)

Carol Nolan

Ceist:

628. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the projects supported by the Climate Action Fund (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11815/20]

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Freagraí scríofa

The Climate Action Fund (CAF) is one of the four major funds set up under Project Ireland 2040 and the National Development Plan sets out an allocation of at least €500m for the CAF over the period to 2027.

To date three projects from the first round of funding have completed the project validation stage during which projects have to meet certain criteria including those relating to financial, environmental and legal requirements. These projects have now moved to delivery and a fourth project is expected to move to delivery shortly. A further three projects are continuing through the validation stage. The realisation of the majority of the leveraged investments will not occur before all of these projects are at more advanced stages of delivery.

The first project to move to delivery stage was ESB e-cars with the CAF committing up to €10 million in support. This project will install new, modern electric vehicle chargers across the country as well as upgrade the existing charging network. To date some 140 of the existing chargers have already been replaced with more modern and reliable charging points. The project has also installed more advanced, and future proofed, fast charger points. While certain work restrictions were in place due to Covid-19, work has now recommenced in upgrading units and rolling out new charging infrastructure across the country.

In February 2020 the validation stage process for the South Dublin County Council Tallaght District Heating Scheme (support of €4.47m) was approved and the project moved to the delivery phase. This project, the first of its kind in Ireland, will see waste heat from a Data Centre used to heat surrounding buildings, including Tallaght IT and other civic buildings. It is envisaged that this may become an exemplar for other Data Centres in Ireland.

A project from Irish Rail, piloting hybrid-drive railcars, has also recently proceeded to delivery.

The Department will continue to progress the validation process on the remaining 4 projects over the coming months.

In the first quarter of this year, my Department held a call for Expressions of Interest to inform the next round of funding under the CAF. A total of 191 submissions were received covering several sectors and with interest from communities nationwide, including the Midlands. At this stage of the process (i.e. expressions of interest) only outline details are available on potential projects. We would expect to see a greater level of detail for these projects when the next round opens for applications later in 2020, including the exact level of investment proposed, what environmental and economic benefits might accrue and what potential job creation prospects might be involved. It is my expectation that there will be significant interest from a range of sectors located across the country, including the midlands, in terms of seeking support from the fund when the next round of applications opens later this year.

I published the National Oil Reserves Agency (Amendment) and Provision of Central Treasury Services Bill yesterday. This legislation will establish the Climate Action Fund on a statutory basis and repurpose surplus funds from the NORA levy, which is a levy on the use of fossil fuels, for use by the fund.

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