Michael Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Bill. I wish to raise several issues.

The Bill seeks to expand the functions of EirGrid, the licensed electricity transmission operator, to include the construction, ownership and operation of the interconnector subject to the grant of the relevant licences and authorisation by the Commission for Energy Regulation and the Energy Regulator for gas and electricity and to provide, in primary legislation, that it may continue to borrow the total capital expenditure required.

I welcome the east-west interconnector. This proposed development could not have been foreseen ten or 15 years ago. The interconnector will tie us into the island of Great Britain and provide for closer co-operation between the two islands that have suffered enormously from historical differences. I am glad those differences have been resolved. We must encourage all sides to work for continued peace.

When the Electricity Supply Board was founded the men and women employed by the ESB and Bord na Mona showed great foresight in building the many power stations around the country. We must continue this work and ensure we provide sustainable energy for future generations on both islands. Security of supply is a particular issue that arises in respect of the Bill. We are all aware of the huge pressure on the grid and on energy. For many years, we wasted enormous amounts of electricity but, people are now conscious of the environmental and cost impact of providing electricity to the domestic and business markets. They know, from initiatives such as the Power of One and so on, how to achieve huge savings in respect of the cost to them and the business community of electricity and in respect of climate change.

In recent years there has been an increase in awareness of renewable energy, which is to be welcomed. We are living in an age of renewable energy. The interconnector will provide safeguards to the generation of electricity through wind and other means. We must ensure that ongoing development through wind energy, by public and private companies, ties in with the environment, is targeted and takes account of the sensitivities of different communities. We must also move forward and replace with wind energy and renewable sources much of the fossil fuel we currently burn. The availability of a ready-made resource in respect of energy will ensure continuity of supply and will protect the environment in the future.

Major efforts are being made across the globe in respect of climate change. While many people spoke out on climate change during the past ten or 15 years, it was generally accepted that there was precious little politicians or countries could do about it. The issue is now being tackled across the globe, no more so than in this House. I welcome the initiatives taken. It is a campaign we must continue to drive forward. While change will cause inconvenience and pain for domestic and business communities, we must ensure we continue to make the right decisions in this regard.

Previous speakers spoke about smart metering. We must ensure we have energies which are important to us. While people may have believed for many years that there was no limit to the amount of energy that could be generated, they are now aware, given the growth in our population, of the enormous pressures in this regard. We must ensure the energy we create is put to the best possible use and not wasted.

The national development plan deals with future development. It has been predicted that our population will increase to almost 4.9 million people by 2040. This will put enormous pressure on this generation to ensure provision of the required infrastructure and planning and development as provided for in the national development plan. It is vitally important that we adhere to this aspect of that plan. We must ensure we make the right decisions in respect of wind energy, climate change and how we conduct our business.

The east-west interconnector has been welcomed on all sides. It will provide a connection between Ireland and Great Britain and on to Europe. Grave concern has been expressed in many parts of the country about the north-south interconnector. I hope the independent review group set up by the Minister to examine this matter will be able to address the concerns expressed.

The introduction of competition to other markets wherein there was a monopoly has been good for consumers. The interconnector will promote competition in the electricity market as it will allow for third party access in a fair, consistent and transparent manner. This, in turn, will bring pressure to bear in respect of reduction in the cost of electricity. The interconnector will diversify the fuel sources used in the Irish system to generate electricity. The environment will benefit greatly from the interconnector which will provide for greater potential to export wind power, reduce the need for carrying reserves and the need for carbon credit payments.

The interconnector will increase the capacity of the single electricity market and provide us with a link to the UK electricity market and, in turn, the European market. We will be in a position to attract more foreign investors who may choose to invest directly in the market through, for example, the provision of additional generating capacity, conventional or renewable energy.

The interconnector connects us to the UK market and on to the European market. Who would have thought some 40, 50 or 60 years ago that there would be such great co-operation within Europe? This co-operation is of enormous benefit to Ireland as a peripheral country. The interconnector will ensure we are no longer isolated but connected to every country in Europe. That is our future. It is where we will see our country going, and it is where we have to encourage our country to go.

Prices have reduced somewhat, but ordinary consumers have seen huge increases in the price of oil and, in turn, the price of electricity, so we have to improve competition and ensure the introduction of additional energy sources. In particular, we need the introduction of external sources to improve the level of competition in the market, which in turn leads to a more competitive environment. That will not only impact on prices to the end user but generate an environment in which the incumbent players have to keep abreast of international market changes in demand and to improve the overall quality and service provision in the market. That is one issue with which we have to deal.

We have seen an all-island market develop in the past ten years. I welcome all the initiatives that have been taken in that regard, and I commend the Minister on his work on that issue and the other people who have been involved on their abilities. What we have achieved could not have been foreseen 20 years ago. We must welcome and secure those developments. Through the east-west interconnector we are connecting to Great Britain and the rest of Europe, and we must not lose sight of our stance in Europe or of what we can gain and have gained from the European Union, particularly with EirGrid.

A key issue is the need to seriously address climate change. Renewables are the way forward, and there has been a huge take-up in the market, but we must be clear about renewables in order to meet a certain target by 2020. The industry has made the same point. However, we must ensure that, as we go down the renewables route, we integrate them as far as possible with other environmental and personal concerns that people have. There is no doubt that one of the great untapped sources of energy is wind energy, which has been used to great effect. We must also move away from our dependence on oil and fossil fuel, which affect our climate.

The other key issue is the national development plan which includes provisions in this regard. We will be judged on how we continue to roll out the national development plan and ensure that it is implemented in full. Generations to come will see the infrastructure we have put in place, and will give credit to those who set up the Electricity Supply Board, Bord na Móna and other semi-State bodies to ensure our electricity supply. We have to continue that process. I commend the Bill to the House.

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