Brian Stanley (Laois, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his reply. Under the public service obligation, PSO, the current projection is that nearly 3,000 MW of renewable energy will receive €335 million in support in 2016-2017 while only 250 MW of fossil fuel will receive €140 million. The fossil fuel industry benefitted from €386 million in subsidies in 2015. That includes the PSO and the fuel allowance scheme. We support the fuel allowance scheme but we need to transfer that and move it on to renewables. When one considers these figures, it is €11,000 per megawatt for renewable power and €56,000 per megawatt for fossil fuel which is five times as much per megawatt. There is no support or subsidy in the State currently, of which I am aware, for solar energy. Wind, biomass, anaerobic digestion, hydro and biogas all receive feed tariffs but solar does not. Solar is the only established renewable technology to not benefit. It is a technology that is most suited to community and local participation with small ownership by local individual farmers or co-operatives. As a result, the solar energy industry is practically non-existent. Compare the situation to that which exists in Germany where 1.5 million German people generate solar energy from their own properties. I ask the Minister to take this consideration on board.

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