Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State and his officials. I fully concur with the Chair's remarks. Some of us have been asking for these for almost two full Dáil terms, so it is great to see them come finally to fruition. I have just four technical questions. Sinn Féin will support the speedy passage of the regulations. As much to put it on the record as anything, will the Minister of State explain the rationale behind the two limits of 3 km and 5 km, that is, why they were chosen and what they are based on? Second, for absolute clarity for anyone listening in, will the Minister of State explain the expansion to the 300 sq. m limit? The third is about the timeline. The Minister of State said at the end that he would like to see this signed as quickly as possible. If we are able to get this through the Dáil and Seanad in the next week or two, are we looking at the signature and passage by the end of October? I think people would like to know.

The fourth is not specifically related to the regulations but it is something I would like to raise. One challenge even with microgeneration through wind is the inability of our system to incorporate what are often called direct lines. For example, Belfast City Airport has a very significant number of solar panels, and because it can run direct lines from the structure where the solar panels are into other aspects of its complex, it has an incredibly high level of renewable energy resources. We do not have that capacity at the moment. For example, a complex of community and school buildings could, as a consequence of this good measure, have solar in a particular location but may not have the capacity to run excess generation to another building rather than into the grid. Is that something that can be resolved? Is it something officials in the Department and their counterparts in the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications are looking at? It would ensure the maximum benefit of new solar for any particular kind of campus base solar that emerges out of this.

Again, I welcome and fully support the proposition before us today.