Mr. Terence O'Rourke:

To take the issue of borrowing limits first, which was the first of the Deputy's questions, the ESB's borrowing limits, as he will be aware, are set in statute, in primary legislation, so they are rigid and have been changed only twice. I think 2007 and 2004 are the only years in which the limits have been changed. At €5 billion at the moment we are coming up close to our €6 billion limit. It is unclear whether the limit includes joint ventures and subsidiaries. We applied last year for an increase in the limits. We will spend about €7 billion over the next five years in capital expenditure. To allow ourselves to have the financial capacity to do that, we thought it would be better to get out of the €6 billion limit. We applied for €10 billion. The proposal at the moment is €12 billion. That is probably a very good cushion, but who knows what will be required in the next five, ten or 20 years? Rather than requiring changes in legislation all the time, it is sensible to put in a good headroom limit there because we may be offered opportunities to have joint ventures with other people. We may have requirements from our shareholder to invest in our business and to create even larger projects. To enable us to have the flexibility to do all that, we thought it was sensible to seek a borrowing increase at this time. Our current strategy, which the board endorsed in November, requires €7 billion in capital expenditure for the next five years. The maximum borrowing in that strategy shows, I think, approximately €7 billion, so we do not intend anywhere at the moment in our current plans to go anywhere near €10 billion or €12 billion. It is just to allow for optionality.

The joint venture with Coillte is a great project because it involves two State-owned bodies, owned by the taxpayers, working together to take the opportunity of using Coillte's land all over the country. As the land is already used for forestry, it is probably easier than many other locations to change into locations for wind farms. We are working on a number of sites with Coillte. It is great to get that joint venture approved through the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission. There are a number of conditions in there, but they are ones we think we will be able to fulfil. We look forward to working with Coillte to develop wind farms in appropriate locations around the country. I take on board the Deputy's observation on the wind farm guidelines, which need to be updated. We are very happy to work with the regulator in that regard. We understand that for the benefit of the whole community we need renewable energy. Some of that has to be onshore wind, but we understand that creates tensions with local communities. We will work very hard to make sure that people's concerns are understood and we will do as best we can to accommodate any concerns. Adhering to updated guidelines will be part of the way we will do that.