Michael Harty (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate Deputy Denis Naughten on his appointment as Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources. It is an extensive Department with responsibilities that extend into many aspects of our daily lives. I am confident that he will provide an extremely capable and decisive ministry and facilitate development, while balancing regulation and control with the practical needs of communities, particularly in rural Ireland. The Energy Bill 2016 is primarily concerned with updating the regulatory system, including the renaming of the CER as the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities, CRU. It is envisaged that it will provide, in primary legislation, more robust penalty provisions for breaches of EU rules on wholesale energy market integrity and transparency. The Electricity Regulation Act 1999 will be amended to increase the commission's powers in a number of respects, particularly in enforcement.

As a Deputy for County Clare, I have a great interest in energy generation, particularly electricity generation. The hydroelectric station at Ardnacrusha and the coal burning station at Moneypoint are located in my constituency. My primary concern lies with the future of the Moneypoint plant. It is the only coal-fired electricity station in the country and, given that coal is relatively cheap, it gives us correspondingly cheap electricity. The ESB has stated the station saves the customer up to €200 million per year in electricity bills.

Not only is generating electricity from coal very good value for money, it is also a major employer in County Clare. The station at Moneypoint employs 190 workers and up to 250 are employed by various subcontractors. Employment in County Clare must be set in the context of the anticipated loss of 240 jobs at Roche Pharmaceuticals in Clarecastle and the failure of the Industrial Development Authority, IDA, to attract significant foreign direct investment to the county. Besides the station at Moneypoint, there is only one significant employer in west Clare, namely, Trump International Golf Links and Hotel in Doonbeg.

The recent Government White Paper on energy, Ireland's Transition to a Low Carbon Energy Future 2015-2030, warned that key decisions must be taken on the station at Moneypoint by 2020. By 2025 the station will be approaching the end of its operating life in its current configuration. One of the major challenges facing the Government is the future of the station. It must have a viable, long-term future. Closing it is not an option.

The Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015 requires the new Government to produce a national low-carbon transition and mitigation plan, Ireland's first statutory low-carbon strategy for the period to 2050. A programme for a Partnership Government states, "The first national mitigation plan will be published within six months of the new Government forming." It will focus on a number of key areas, including electricity generation. The plan will examine specific measures to reduce emissions from electricity generation and outline how new technologies can be ready for incorporation into Ireland's electricity system and how the cost of existing renewable technologies can be lowered. A Programme for a Partnership Government promises a "national dialogue on climate change that will involve extensive public consultation". The programme states that in anticipation of the station at Moneypoint coming to the end of its operating life in its current configuration, the national dialogue on climate change will identify, as soon as possible, the most suitable replacement low-carbon generation technology.

The ESB has stated, "Any future decision on Moneypoint needs to be considered against the backdrop of the station’s economic benefits, impact on the environment, possible conversion to biomass firing, and emergence of new technologies, such as carbon capture, which may enable low carbon coal burn in the future". The ESB will have a major role to play in deciding on the best way forward in fuelling the station. One of the most publicised suggested alternatives is the conversion of the station from coal burning to biomass. One international expert has claimed that the conversion from coal to biomass could create 200 jobs and extend the life of the station at Moneypoint by 30 years. Even if the plant were available, sufficient acreage in Ireland would not be available to grow the amount of biomass required and much of the biomass would have to be imported.

While these issues are to be teased out by experts, time is not an our side. The decision to be made on the station at Moneypoint can no longer be put on the long finger. The decision to be made is how best to convert, adapt or modify the station to accommodate the most suitable replacement low-carbon technology. I invite the Minister to visit Moneypoint. It will give him the opportunity to meet the management and staff and a cross-section of the community and business interests in west Clare. I hope such a visit can be arranged in the near future. While experts have a key role to play in deciding the future of the station at Moneypoint, the voice of west Clare must be heard.

Regarding Brexit and the sustainability of Ireland's energy sector, 85% of our energy raw material or requirements are imported from abroad, much of it from the United Kingdom. We import gas and electricity via the interconnectors between the United Kingdom and Ireland, while 90% of our oil reserves are stored there. The European Union will have to make very special arrangements for Ireland in terms of its access to energy supplies via the United Kingdom.

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