Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank both Deputies for their comments. So far, Ireland has had approximately 146 wells drilled. That compares with over 4,000 wells drilled in Britain and over 1,200 in Norway. The reason people have not been coming here until now is that a chance of a find is much greater elsewhere. We have resources in the Department, and the petroleum affairs decision is very much involved in the issue. The Department has sponsored, along with the Canadian Government in the Labrador area, a study of geological backgrounds and the possibility of new exploration based on reversing plate changes. In an Atlantic margin round, 12 new companies have taken up options to examine seismic data. I announced recently that the Department is in discussions about a major new seismic analysis taking in thousands of kilometres off the Atlantic coast to determine what may be under the sea.

We must be realistic and remain factual. We want these companies to find oil and attract them to the country. That is why we have our current level of consent and co-operation. There is also our tax regime, which is often attacked by people. That is comparable with that of Spain and Portugal. We must encourage companies to explore here and we hope they will make oil finds. Nevertheless, they must drill to find oil, and that is up to them. There will be more drilling next year than there has been in previous years, which is good.

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