Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 7 April 2022
101. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the degree of Ireland's energy dependence by country in tabular form; and the estimated timeline it would take for Ireland to achieve energy independence. [18422/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraEU Eurostat figures show that the average import dependency rates of EU Member States is 61%, with Ireland's import dependency higher than the average at 69%. A full table of import dependency figures by Member State is published by Eurostat. Ireland imports all its oil. It accounts for 45% of Ireland’s primary energy requirement, which is one of the highest rates of oil dependency in the EU. Of this, the majority is used in transport. There is also significant oil use in residential and business heating and in industry.
Ireland sources roughly one-quarter of its natural gas from the Corrib gas field. Three-quarters is sourced via the interconnector from the UK, which has diverse sources of supply. Natural gas accounts for 34% of Ireland’s primary energy requirement and is used in electricity generation, the industrial sector and heating homes.
The third largest primary energy source for Ireland is from renewables, which makes up 13% of our total requirement. The share of renewable energy in Ireland's primary supply has increased from 2.3% to 13% since 2005, just under a factor of 6 increase. Wind is the second largest source of generated electricity, after natural gas. In 2020, wind generation accounted for 36.1% of all electricity generated in Ireland, which is one of the highest rates in the EU.
The best way to secure our energy needs is to continue to promote energy efficiency and renewable energy. Ireland’s 2021 Climate Action Plan sets us on a pathway to reduce our reliance on imported fossil fuels dramatically by 2030, in the context of reaching net-zero emission by 2050. However, as set out in the November 2021 Government Policy Statement on Security of Electricity of Supply, there will be a continued need beyond 2030 for gas-fired conventional generation to support and back-up high levels of renewable electricity.
