Brian Leddin (Limerick City, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to ask the Minister questions in the Thirty-third Dáil. I acknowledge his hard work as Minister in recent years and thank him for it. He has always shown my colleague, Deputy Eamon Ryan, respect and courtesy in the Dáil and I will endeavour to engage constructively with him and his successor in the very important work carried out by the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment.

The first issue I wish to address is the potential of wind energy in our seas. As has been stated many times in this House, our marine territory is ten times larger than our land area. We have already started to harness the potential for wind energy in the Irish Sea and I note the Minister's announcement last week of the progression of planning on some wind projects. However, the real potential lies in the immense energy reserves off our western seaboard. We are now at a stage, with projects being announced in Norway and elsewhere, where offshore floating wind is on its way to becoming commercially viable. That could allow us to leverage private investment to power much of the nation's electricity needs, and indeed, to export electricity with the appropriate infrastructure.

I believe that these developments will deliver significant benefits and employment to Kerry, Limerick, Clare, Galway, Mayo and Donegal. Offshore wind, with its higher capacity factor, has potential to deliver not only significant constant baseload to our electricity supply, but the employment potential per MW is much greater than for onshore wind. We will need marine infrastructure for construction and maintenance. Large numbers of skilled engineers and construction workers will play a critical part in writing this new chapter in the Irish energy story.

We can plan now for the moment in the perhaps not-too-distant future when both the technology and economics of floating offshore wind converge and that this great potential energy resource becomes realisable. When this day arrives, the main obstacles to harnessing it will be our ability to store the renewable electricity that exceeds our own national requirements and our ability to transfer it to the larger electricity markets in Europe.

One emerging technology in this regard is green hydrogen. This is not a party political broadcast but a very real prospect. Excess renewable electricity from our offshore wind farms can be used to create hydrogen using the electrolytic process. This can then be used in transport, heavy industry, and perhaps also in power generation to balance our grid, replacing natural gas as we push for a net zero emissions target by 2050 or sooner.

These developments are a few years away, but not many. We can plan now and give a signal to our industry. We must give that signal if we are to spur it to achieve this ambition. Critically, it would also be a signal to our communities that there is a bright future, one that is synonymous with innovation, technology, education and prosperity. What potential does the Minister see for communities in Kerry, Limerick, Clare, Galway, Mayo and Donegal in the future, as we seek to harness the potential of wind energy off our western seaboard, together with innovative technologies such as hydrogen storage?

I move to discuss the just transition. Having read through the progress report prepared by the just transition commissioner, Mr. Kieran Mulvey, on the just transition in the midlands, there is great reason for optimism and confidence in the efforts of our towns and villages in rural Ireland. Communities, workers and local businesses have been shown to be dynamic, resilient and ambitious, particularly when faced with far-reaching challenges such as the changes facing the peat industry. The efforts in the midlands in transitioning away from carbon intensive activities could set a strong precedent for future efforts across Ireland as our country and society will undoubtedly undergo significant changes brought on by Covid-19, but also brought on by other trends such as increased digitalisation and automation. In welcoming the publication of the just transition report, I ask what potential the Minister sees in extending the just transition approach to communities across the country as we seek to work towards a more sustainable future.

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