Paul Connaughton Snr (Galway East, Fine Gael)

I am delighted to have the opportunity to speak on this Bill. The Energy (Bio-fuel Obligation and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2010 is to be welcomed as it will have significant consequences for everybody. There are two aspects to my contribution today, one of which is to highlight the total dependance of this State on imported fuel. I am sure this has been already mentioned but it has been the way for years. We are so dependent that even the slightest hiccup in the oil-producing states means that within three or four days we would be in trouble. It is that bad. If the petrol supplies do not run out, as they have done on a few occasions over the years, the scare would be enough to ensure the price of oil increases dramatically.

What is happening in the fuel business even today defies logic. The price of a litre of petrol or diesel is as high today as it was when there was a spike 18 months ago. A barrel of crude oil went to $140 at the time and this House was buzzing with anticipation of what could happen to the economy at that time. At that price it is extremely difficult for manufacturers, commuters and motorists to pay for what they need. We have arrived at that fuel price again today, although I do not know if anybody has noticed it but myself.

Petrol was €1.35 per litre at a fuel station I visited yesterday, with diesel at €1.24 per litre. I have said that the price of a barrel of crude oil 18 months ago was $140 but this morning it was $82.5 a barrel. I cannot understand the discrepancy and I am waiting for somebody to explain it. The current price for oil is approximately 40% less than what it was at that peak. Where is the profit being made this time? We cannot blame the oil-producing countries for the significant increase in fuel prices today.

There was much discussion yesterday about the ESB being forced into competition with Bord Gáis and others, which is good. If fuel prices stay at their current levels, electricity prices will increase instead of decrease no matter with whom the ESB is in competition. We will have to introduce a mechanism in this country to meet a range of issues in the environment and the economy. We must give this serious consideration.

I noticed the introduction of electric car charging points last week. Approximately 15 years ago I was a member of an Oireachtas delegation in Brussels which was brought to see a prototype of an electric car. I drove it around a type of castle complex just outside Brussels. It would have had to have been a fairly big car to hold me in comfort but if I had gone too far in it not too many people would buy it. It was a battery-operated unit but it was not very streamlined. In other words, it was not a sexy car and it got nowhere.

There is a Green Party Minister of State in the Chamber. People may not agree with this statement but I believe that as soon as the price of petrol and diesel drops, it is almost impossible to get the public interested in anything else. Any alternative sources, by their nature at the beginning in particular, are usually more expensive. The only time we can get people to concentrate on an alternative energy or fuel is when the price of diesel and petrol rockets. That price is on the way up and having spoken to some economists in the past month or two, it seems we are not far away from a level of €1.50 per litre for petrol. That is a significant cost at 50% more than what is usual.

If the price trend continues, new alternatives will take on a new relevance. There are a number of farm crops that fit the bill when we talk about bio-fuels. My background is in farming and the Ceann Comhairle knows a good bit about it too. Every business and profession in the world will catch on to something extremely quickly if there is a living to be made from it, and farmers are no different.

Over the past ten to 20 years people have said oilseed rape was the way to go and that it would be a big business. It would provide an alternative to the wheat and barley that made no money and the potatoes that were not sold. Oilseed rape was meant to be a runner but its success was partial. Driving from here to Carlow or Louth, one will not see too many fields containing oilseed rape, and if one crosses the Shannon there is none.

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