Brian Leddin (Limerick City, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank Dr. Ryan for completing EirGrid's opening statement. We normally allow five minutes for opening statements but it is very useful for us to get so much information, so we have departed from the usual rule. We very much appreciate the detail contained in the opening statement. It is extremely helpful for us.

We are going to get into some of the challenges we have in grid development. Before that, though, I congratulate EirGrid on the work it has done to get us this far in decarbonising our economy. The performance of the grid in December, and even in the last week, was incredible. It is a testament to the leadership shown in EirGrid by the witnesses. Speaking on behalf of the committee, I ask them to convey our appreciation across the organisation for the work done by EirGrid. I say this because it is central to our decarbonisation challenge and this should be acknowledged.

We have a list of committee members who wish to speak already and I will bring them in shortly. Returning to Dr. Ryan, I wish to talk about the long term and the interconnection policy published last summer. Further interconnection post 2030 was mentioned and the challenges that will be encountered from 2040 to 2050. In the context of the State in the years ahead really ramping up our offshore energy generation potential, up to 30 GW and beyond, this represents a phenomenal amount of power. It seems to me that interconnection with mainland Europe, in particular, and also with the UK, will be critical. It seems that more than what was listed in this regard might be required. I think the interconnection policy allows for more but I will be interested to hear Dr. Ryan's thoughts on the longer-term interconnection pipeline.

Equally, regarding the comment made on the report from the International Energy Agency by Mr. Foley, in respect of saying it is based on unrealistic assumptions and unconstrained views and that his analysis is different, I afford him the opportunity to go into this subject in more detail. That would be helpful for us.