Mr. John Finnegan:

From the Chair's first very general and important question as to how we get to the 80% target, because it is a huge target, I hope I can reassure the Chair that the targets in the climate action plan, CAP, are based on evidence. In particular for CAP 2023, EirGrid was preparing its Shaping Our Electricity Future strategy document at the same time. That is part of EirGrid's responsibility, to do modelling and forecasting of what the whole system needs to look like. The Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications worked with EirGrid and made sure the assumptions and targets it was setting itself in that planning were those of the carbon budget. That is the starting point for all of this. That then required the 80% target. We then ensured the actions in the climate action plan, the targets for onshore and offshore wind and for storage, were the actions needed to reach the 80% target, which in turn is what is needed to meet the carbon budgets. There is a plan. The climate action plan, EirGrid's plans, ESB Networks' plans, and the targets we have as a Department for subsidising onshore and offshore renewables are a cohesive programme of work to reach that 80% target, which in turn is what is needed to meet our climate targets.

The Chair moved on to the specifics of, in this case, an island scheme. If there is an island scheme, yes, those 15 connections are available for them.

If an island scheme applies for the connection and gets one of those, it is not an auction process. They are offered the connection the same way as any other renewable project, on a cost basis. On an island, the cost may be higher than a scheme that happens to be closer to where the grid is stronger. There may also be planning difficulties. An island scheme faces all the difficulties of a community scheme but in a more extreme way. Any community scheme tends to be further away from existing generation and use, almost by definition, and faces a more challenging planning environment and, therefore, higher costs. That is why the forthcoming small-scale renewable scheme is so different. We are hearing from community groups, and it would apply more intensely to island-based schemes, that the RESS is more suitable for large-scale and utility-scale schemes, particularly the competitive aspect of it. They enter an auction and the most cost-effective scheme is picked. This will be designed for communities, to engage with communities, select community projects and give them the resources and the additional technical help, capability-building and subsidy they need to make the scheme work. The forthcoming small-scale scheme is a recognition of the particular difficulties community schemes have, which would be most keenly felt by island schemes. The response is this non-competitive one.

On offshore, we will take that away. It is exactly the plan that it be plan-led. The starting point for these plans will be seabed planning: which are the areas where the best wind is available and where we are interfering less with wildlife, the natural environment and the livelihood of fishers? We will pick the optimum places for that and built the grid around it. The advantage of that is you are planning it in advance and if that grid creates additional opportunities when it passes island or coastal communities, then that opportunity is there.

We all read with great concern the report earlier this week from Wind Energy Ireland. We deal daily with all those people. It is a very active and engaged industry which has done enormous things in Ireland and we are happy and proud to work with it and on everything it does. We recognise the concerns. It is planning and grid. That is what we spend much of our time working on. We have made a lot of progress on it, as evidenced by the success of the wind industry. There is more to be done and we have many interesting things happening that should address the concerns.

On planning, the next revision of the national planning framework will expressly recognise renewables and the infrastructure required. That will be driven down under the new scheme coming from the new planning Act. The fact renewables are recognised in national policy will be driven down through the regional and local plans so the process of getting planning permission for renewable projects should be much easier. In general, the reforms of planning and resourcing-up of planning bodies will help renewable projects in the same way they will help any investment.

In terms of grid, the enduring connection policy, ECP, which is the current system for connections, has been a great success. There were huge concerns before it was introduced about timelines. In general, the feedback has been very good. It comes to an end this year. Our colleagues in CRU, together with EirGrid and the ESB, are working on the successor to it. The aim is to further increase the availability of connections and reduce the timelines so we can meet these ambitious targets and our legal objectives under EU directives, which require us to develop these projects in a timely way.