Mr. John Melvin:

In March 2014 the commission issued a decision on the ESB Networks electric vehicle pilot scheme. The decision approved a research and demonstration project designed to assess and report on the impact of electric vehicles on the Irish electricity distribution system. As part of the decision, ESB Networks was allowed to recover up to €25 million through distribution use of system, DUOS, charges, which are for use of the electricity system. Following on from this, in October 2016, the CER issued a consultation paper on the results of the pilot scheme and the associated assets, including the chargers we can see in public spaces on the side of the road. In the consultation process views were sought on the ESB's eCars proposal on the continuing ownership of these assets. The options proposed to the commission were that the assets become part of the regulated asset base, meaning that they would continue to be considered part of the ESB Networks system and supported and remunerated through the distribution use of system charges; that the assets be sold to a third party via public tender in a single lot or multiple lots, essentially, a disposal of the assets to another interested party or parties; and that there be continuing ESB eCars ownership and operation of the assets. The ESB eCars proposal highlighted that while the €25 million was the amount the CER allowed ESB Networks to recover through DUOS charges, there was additional expenditure of approximately €6.1 million on the installation and continued operation and maintenance of the system.

The pilot project was designed to assess and report on the impact of multiple electric vehicle charging points on the distribution system. In October 2016 the report compiled by ESB Networks as part of the project was published. It covers elements of the CER's interaction with the electric vehicle infrastructure on the electricity side. On the gas side, I note that in the past five years, under price control for Gas Networks Ireland, the Commission for Energy Regulation has allowed an €8 million fund for innovative natural gas projects. Approximately €4 million of that sum was spent on compressed natural gas infrastructure. As Mr. Gannon pointed out, the majority of the infrastructure and usage was targeted at heavy goods vehicles such as buses and trucks in the haulage sector.

As part of the latest price control for Gas Networks Ireland, the consultation paper on which was published on Friday, there was a proposal to allow €17.5 million in the next period for similar innovation, approximately €12.5 million of which Gas Networks Ireland has already earmarked for what is called the causeway project which involves 17 compressed natural gas fuelling points at strategic locations throughout the core transport infrastructure in Ireland. This addresses the CER's role in the provision of electricity infrastructure to support electric vehicles and recent interactions we have had on the compressed natural gas fuelling points.