Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am glad the Deputy asked this question because this action is one of a series of significant measures the Government is pursuing to reduce the amount of emissions coming from this country and its economy. Moneypoint, and energy generation generally, is a little different because it is in the traded sector and so does not have as direct an impact in terms of our national targets as do other emission sources. Having said that, it is inappropriate to produce power from coal any longer. We have to give the ESB the time to find viable alternatives that can use the significant grid infrastructure that connects Moneypoint across this country. The station is connected to two 400 kV lines and is the most significant piece of electricity grid infrastructure we have so we should be using it in the future to transport power around this island. However, we have to find alternatives to coal in order to do that. It is up to the ESB to work with the Minister, Deputy Bruton, to find alternatives that use the grid to its full capacity and that recognise the employment challenges that may come from a move away from generating power from coal.

There are multiple opportunities arising from renewables, both onshore and offshore; from gas, which is an awful lot cleaner than coal although it is still a carbon fuel from which we need to move away; and from biomass, where there certainly are opportunities. However it is up to the ESB to come up with viable commercial alternatives that can protect employment in the region and that can use the existing infrastructure, just as it is up to Bord na Móna to do so with respect to the transformation process in which it is involved. It is worth noting that the ESB announced this week that it is engaging in the development of a very significant offshore wind project off Dundalk. This will be a very significant contributor of renewable energy to the Irish grid in the future. This is the change that is happening. The use of coal to generate energy must end by 2025 but we need to use the infrastructure which has been built up over many years and which will still be part of our power solutions.

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