John Perry (Sligo-North Leitrim, Fine Gael)

I congratulate Deputy Coveney on bringing forward this important motion on Ireland's energy resources. The availability and cost of primary energy resources are key factors in our economic prosperity and to the standard of living we can reach. Raising the standard of economic prosperity further will demand more energy resources. Electricity is a key component of the energy sector and of all forms of energy use. Few other industries provide services which are of such widespread national importance as electricity. Without electricity the economy suffers. It is not a form of primary energy, but must be generated from primary energy sources such as coal, oil, natural gas, nuclear energy, bio-energy and wind, etc.

The availability of adequate, reliable and economic primary energy supplies is of crucial importance to our national ability to generate electricity. In Ireland, carbon-based primary energy resources for electricity generation are limited. We had one significant natural gas find off Cork and recently we were lucky to find another natural gas field off the west coast. Perhaps the best we can hope for is that we will find a significant natural gas field every 25 years. The most significant primary energy resource available to us now is the Corrib gas field. It is of the utmost importance that the natural gas from this field be brought ashore as quickly as possible and distributed to as big a region as possible. The world is covered with natural gas pipelines, big and small and high and low pressure. There is nothing exceptional about the onshore gas pipeline from the Corrib gas field. It is time to set aside old-fashioned superstitions about technical progress and to complete the Corrib project as quickly as possible. It is important too that we get a connection to the north west, to gateway regions such as Sligo.

The part of this Fine Gael motion which calls for investment in an electricity interconnector with mainland Europe is the most important part. I would go as far as to say that a direct electricity interconnector to Europe is one of the most strategic elements of future energy policy. In the future, we must have the option of being able to import a substantial part of our energy requirements in the form of electricity directly from mainland Europe. Our electricity supply must come at a reasonable cost and must be reliable. The insurance cost of having the capability to directly import electricity is justified. It is especially important for businesses that we get value for money when importing electricity. Grounded aeroplanes are not the only pieces of technology that are stationary these days. The massive ash cloud over Ireland and the rest of Europe is not being dispersed quickly enough due to the lack of adequate and consistent winds. Whatever the underlying climatic reason, for the past few months wind generation has only been 20% of the installed wind turbine generation capacity. If a significant portion of our future electricity generation capacity is tied to wind resources and if wind energy disappears, as it seems to have done over the past few months, the only option available to keep our economy and society going would be massive electricity imports. If we do not have a major electricity interconnector directly connected to European grid, we will be in serious danger of grounding our economy, just as has happened with the crisis with flights out of Ireland in the past week.

The environmental and economic benefits of wind energy are not as great as the Minister and other proponents claim. I believe we must have a prudent economic approach to any proposal for further significant national investment in wind farms. Wind does not blow all the time and when it does, it may not be available during the peak electricity demand periods. Wind is an unreliable replacement for more dependable and more cost-effective nuclear and carbon-based energy sources. The implications from the failure of the wind generation capacity to deliver over the past few months must be addressed. I call on the Minister to address this specific point in his response to this debate and to respond to reports that on each of the five coldest days last year, electricity generated from wind was virtually zero.

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