Mr. Tim Murphy:

I thank the committee for the opportunity to speak about the Port of Cork's plans to support renewable energy. The Port of Cork is the second largest port in the State and a designated European core port under the trans-European transport, TEN-T, network. We handle all six modes of port traffic. Later this week, we will launch our new port master plan with the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, in Cork. The master plan is our strategic development plan for the next 30 years. It is underpinned by two strategic goals: first, our move out of the city to the lower harbour by 2050 to deeper waters and nearer shipping lanes and second, our decarbonisation to net zero by 2050. We took a big step in our move to lower harbour last year by opening up the new container terminal at Ringaskiddy. This represented €100 million capital investment.

Our next big step is to support Ireland’s energy needs and ORE in particular. In order to meet the ambitions set out by the Government in respect of ORE, we plan to keep two container terminals open until two things happen: first, the completion of the M28 motorway to Ringaskiddy; and, second, when Ireland’s ORE needs are met. The Port of Cork is unique because it currently has planning permission and foreshore lease in place for two quayside berths that can be built out early to facilitate the country’s plans for fixed bottom ORE. Thereafter these walls will support floating ORE. The version of my opening statement submitted to the committee includes graphics of our infrastructural plans.

Once the offshore renewable energy construction phase is over, we will repurpose the quayside berths to support our move from the city.

In January this year, we applied to the EU's central fund for partial funding. We are in active discussions with the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, ISIF, on the possibility of its becoming a potential funding partner. For some time, Cork Harbour has been an energy hub, with Ireland's only oil refinery in Whitegate and two combined-cycle gas terminal, CCGT, power plants in Whitegate and Aghada, which between them produce more than 1 GW of energy. They are just two examples. The new master plan for the Port of Cork identifies that the port can be a key enabler of Cork Harbour's transformation to a green energy hub, which will include not just ORE but also emerging green energy fuels. In June this year, Green Biofuels will officially open Ireland’s first green fuel terminal in Ringaskiddy.

The new master plan for the port identifies the infrastructural changes necessary to ensure sufficient port capacity is in place to meet trade demand. It also identifies how the build-out of the infrastructure can be accelerated to support Ireland's energy needs, particularly for fixed-bottom ORE.