Mr. Derek Moran:

The Deputy is quite right. In 2019, I invested in solar panels, which were expensive at the time, with a five-year payback. Ironically, the shift in the unit rate, which has gone up, has accelerated the payback time. It is now quicker. We also invested in LED lighting through the Electric Ireland scheme at the time. That was a no-brainer. Refrigeration has been mentioned a couple of times as a huge component of an energy bill in retail premises so we invested in energy-efficient refrigeration. Is there more we can do? Absolutely, but are heat pumps cost-effective? I have quotations for generators and am looking at quotations for, as the Deputy mentioned, wind generation but sometimes it might not be feasible because I am in a residential area and who wants a big windmill beside their front door?

There is more we can do. We are doing basic stuff, similar to that mentioned by the Deputy as happening in her local supermarket, such as turning off lights in mineral coolers and refrigeration in beer coolers that do not need to be turned on for a couple of hours, but these measures are not sustainable. People do not want to turn their lights off. They want to show they are open for business and do it properly. Of course, there is more we can do. I am open to anything that will reduce our usage. My usage is down about 5% year on year but my costs are up in the region of 80%.