Mr. Noel Regan:

In response to the Deputy's question on gas storage, I will try to clarify what is in the legislation on that. It is not seeking new investment in gas storage; rather the legislation provides that member states have the right to ask their gas pipeline operator to ensure that there is a certain level of gas in the storage reservoir that is currently there. Gas storage levels have been decreasing in recent years which means that when we hit winter, and if the weather is particularly cold, it puts the system under stress with price rises. There is nothing in the package to facilitate new investment in storage. Rather it provides that during the winter, if there are concerns, there is enough gas in storage to manage the peak essentially.

In terms of what is proposed in the legislation versus Ireland's position, which the Deputy correctly described, the approach lends itself to that in the sense that it seeks to gather data on the full life-cycle emissions of gas imports. The Commission has raised the flag that before 2025, once it has that data and evidence, it will look to strengthen the position. Step A is to get the data and evidence and step B is to act. This means that essentially with high-emission gas like fracked gas, for example, steps can be taken to reduce its use. It will lend itself to the discussion and to the Irish position. We will have to consider how we build it into the discussion but it is certainly very helpful for opening that debate.

Another proposal from the Commission, which is also new, is to set up a system of global monitoring of methane. The Commission will be able to see where methane emissions are occurring across the globe and then, using diplomatic language, it will let countries know, in the first instance, that there is a methane issue. That is a positive proposal.

Finally, on hydrogen, the package is designed with a lot of incentives for renewable and low-carbon hydrogen. It is designed around a suite of incentives for them. It is also designed to reduce fossil fuel use. Frankly, we need to do more scrutiny to see how it all knits together because while this is a gas package, it also involves the electricity system, the natural gas system and the hydrogen system. We are working through it to understand the implications. While not wanting to complicate matters too much, it is also very much linked to the renewable energy directive, the definitions therein and how it all knits together. The Deputy's points are well made and we are trying to understand the implications for different sectors.