Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

All of these issues will have to be reconsidered in the context of Brexit and it would be foolish of me to rule anything in or out. A lot also depends on the agreement with the United Kingdom. For example, Ireland is subject to conditions within the European Union which oblige it to have capacity and storage facilities for oil and gas reserves. I refer to the obligation to have a 90-day supply. As some of the available capacity is offshore and some will be in the United Kingdom and outside the European Union, we must either seek a derogation or look at storing onshore some of the reserves. All of this will be very much dependent on the negotiations that will take place on the implications of Brexit. It would be wrong of me to rule anything out until we have a clearer idea of exactly what type of agreement will be in place. In reality, the United Kingdom is, in many cases, an importer of energy and gas supplies which transition through that country into Ireland. We have to look at the issue of interconnectivity in the supply of electricity and gas. The French President met the Taoiseach before the summer to discuss a high level agreement to develop the new Celtic interconnector which is back on the agenda because of Brexit which brings it very much to the fore.