Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

My thanks to you, Chairman, and the members of the select committee for facilitating the urgent discussion on these two important international agreements that I signed with Denmark and Estonia last week.

Ireland committed to achieving our 2009 renewable energy directive target of meeting 16% of energy demand from renewable sources by the end of 2020. While good progress has been made to date, especially in renewable electricity, where we have achieved 36.5% in 2019 as against our target of 40%, it is projected that a shortfall of between 3% and 4% is likely by year end. In terms of renewable heat, Ireland is projected to achieve approximately 50% of the 12% target by 2020. Ireland is not alone among member states that will fall short of their binding renewable energy targets.

To meet the 2020 target and ensure compliance with the directive, my Department has negotiated international agreements with Estonia and Denmark to purchase statistical transfers for 2020. Following Government approval on 24 November, I signed both agreements in Dublin earlier this month and they will enter into force subject to ratification by Dáil Éireann.

In terms of costs, the State will pay €37.5 million to Estonia for the purchase of 2.5 terawatt hours, TWh, of energy and €12.5 million to Denmark for a volume of 1 TWh of energy. In total, the State will procure 3.5 TWh of renewable energy at a cost of €50 million. This is a significant cost to the State but it is important to point out that the funds received by both Estonia and Denmark will be used to accelerate deployment of renewable electricity in their jurisdictions in line with their national energy and climate plans. While it was not our preference to achieve compliance via this mechanism, which is available to all member states under the directive, we have exhausted all alternative options for compliance through short-term action. This mechanism is part of the European architecture under the 2009 renewable energy directive designed to allow member states meet their targets. Ireland is not alone in that Luxembourg, Malta and the Netherlands have all concluded similar arrangements in recent years.

Since the Government took office in June, it has launched the first auction under the transformational renewable electricity support scheme. This will see a major upscaling in renewable energy projects connecting to the grid from 2021, with, for the first time, solar energy and community-owned projects supplying homes across Ireland. Similarly, we are rolling out schemes to decarbonise and electrify our heat and transport sectors and combine these with a renewable electricity supply that is the envy of the world. Already, Ireland has surpassed Denmark as the number one in onshore wind power in Europe and soon the first offshore wind farms will be connecting to our grid, charging our electric vehicles and powering heat pumps throughout the country. Through the support scheme for renewable heat, substantial progress will be delivered in decarbonising our heat sector and weaning ourselves off fossil fuels.

Unfortunately, these policies and programmes will not be deployed in time to contribute significantly towards our 2020 targets, and it is important for Ireland to demonstrate its commitment to meeting renewable energy targets and honouring its EU commitments as part of the wider aspirations of the EU Green Deal. The necessary funds are available in my Department's Vote this year. It is important to point out to committee members that the money will be used by the member states concerned to promote renewable energy projects within their countries. I am confident other opportunities may be afforded to Ireland in future to work closely with our EU partners on meeting renewable targets.

Both of the agreements are with EU members states with which Ireland shares a common commitment to taking robust climate action, to accelerating the roll-out of renewable energy to supply our grid, to heat our homes and to move our people as part of an integrated transport network. Like Ireland, Denmark and Estonia are small countries with a strong European identity which have a shared ambition in developing offshore wind resources as well as a strong commitment to the digital economy.

I hope that these agreements will strengthen future co-operation between Ireland and its fellow member states to tackle the climate emergency and put citizens at the heart of the climate transition.

Regarding the setting of climate targets more broadly and future compliance costs, I stress that the overarching context of the 2030 climate targets was Ireland’s commitment to the goals and objectives of the 2015 Paris Agreement and regard for the evolution of climate and energy policy at EU level. The negotiations led to an EU-wide binding renewable energy target of 32% by 2030, with national contributions to be identified through the national energy and climate plan process. The solution to avoiding future costs for statistical transfers or other such measures is not to reduce ambition; it is to accelerate delivery across all the Departments and State agencies concerned. These costs to the State act as a reminder of the shared EU commitment to climate action and the failure to deliver.

The programme for Government acknowledges the increased effort required at national level to meet the global climate challenge and commits Ireland to a 7% annual average greenhouse gas emissions reduction between now and 2030. When compared with the new EU-wide target in the European Green New Deal, the level of ambition in the programme for Government comes out at between 55% and 60%. The overall objective of the programme's climate and energy commitments is to underpin the long-term, sustainable competitiveness of the economy as we transition from a redundant fossil-fuel based economic model to a carbon-neutral one. The transition will support further job creation through the development of new and emerging sectors. The climate action plan, which will be forthcoming next year, will further step up our ambitions with necessary actions to ensure that the cross-government effort required is being implemented and monitored effectively.

The green economy, including the retrofitting and renewable energy sector, the circular economy, clean mobility, green and blue infrastructure, sustainable agriculture and the bioeconomy, will all create high-quality employment opportunities that will be a source of significant employment growth over the coming decades. I am confident these enduring benefits will outweigh any short-term costs and I look forward to working with the committee in future on delivering on this ambitious agenda. I thank the committee for its attention, and I am happy to take questions.