Mr. Mike Quinn:

I will be very quick. Deputy Ryan correctly pointed out that there is decision on inertia around the 400 kV line that comes out of Moneypoint. The Government has stated that Moneypoint will be retired at 2025 and a decision will be made around 2020 or 2021 on this. I have not seen any scenario where conventional generation does not supplement renewables up to 2050. I am not sure of the case after 2050 but until then there has to be a base load alongside renewables. Ireland has been very successful in that and we are at 55% at present but we still need gas. One example that we looked at in 2016 when the wind dropped to 1% on one day and the slack was taken up by the combined cycle gas turbine, CCGT, plants and it went as high as 73% of energy in a particular day. We need that fast response from the CCGTs. My colleague will touch on the carbon capture and storage, CCS, generally.

Deputy Bríd Smith referred to the Bord na Móna biogas facility in Drehid, County Kildare. That gas was being flared before we put in the landfill gas engines. It is from organic waste which generates gas when it decays, which we now use as fuel for four engines which provides power to 8,000 houses. That will change over time, however. The majority of household waste goes to the waste-to-energy plant in Poolbeg. Changes in legislation that are being brought in regarding the brown bin organic waste-----