Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Knowing the Minister, Deputy Ryan's view on this issue, I think he will be impatient to get some recommendations about what is possible and what is not. That will determine how we will work with the cement industry in the future. This is a sector that has to find a credible route to reducing emissions, given how big a contributor it is. We want to do that in a way that does not wipe out an industry, because I think that would be wrong. We need this industry for the foreseeable future. This will be a partnership between the State and the sector to look at what we can do with regard to technology to capture emissions, to reduce the carbon intensity of how we produce cement, and for the construction sector to look at alternative materials. All of that is under way.

I would have to accept it is at the early point in carbon capture and storage. I do not want to sell this as some kind of silver bullet but it is a technology worth looking at. The same argument can be made about lots of technologies, such as floating wind, offshore, etc. Some people are sceptical and some are certain it will happen in the future, as am I, and it is likewise for hydrogen. We cannot bet on one technology but must explore them all to ensure we maximise potential.