Ian Marshall (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for their presentations. I would like some clarity on three points. First, there has been much reference to micro-generation. Having spoken to some of our counterparts in Europe and to businesses which are involved in micro-generation, namely, businesses with a high electricity demand and the ability to generate same, there is an appetite for an adjacent business to be able to share or trade that electricity between those businesses. Is that something that is far off in the future and could not be considered at the moment or is it something that we could deliver in the short to medium term? Could adjacent businesses use the grid to effectively shift energy and electricity between each other and trade same?

Second, when we look at the success of renewables in Europe, much of it is attributed to the fact that it is very much a community initiative. Is there a mechanism where a community initiative to generate renewable energy could be shared, utilising the grid to bring the electricity back to members of the community?

Third, I refer to investment, specifically in smart technology. As much as we can produce more renewable electricity, we probably need to look at being more efficient in how we use electricity and having a capacity to store it for use in times of need because of the variability or intermittent nature of renewables. Is enough investment taking place in that area and is there a strategic approach to it on a national level?