Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

We will be doing what many other countries are now committed to, such as net zero by 2050 in the UK and what California is doing, which is net zero in the same timeframe. Other countries in Europe are aiming for more ambitious times sooner than that. China and Germany are doing this. The world economy is switching towards this new energy system because it is better. By 2050, and it hard to have a crystal ball, it is likely there will be a variety of different technologies that provide back-up and support to what will largely be a renewable electricity power system, with electricity having an increasing role in transport, heating and a range of different sectors. That may involve carbon capture and storage, CCS, where one takes the carbon out in the generation process and stores it geologically. It may involve a switch to new green hydrogen fuels, whereby through electrolysis we can convert our superabundance of renewable power into fuels like that, which can provide back-up, and other storage systems. There will probably be a variety of demand management, with sophisticated switching on and off of energy uses to store and balance electricity. It is going to come because it is a better system. It is more competitive, cleaner, indigenous and we are good at it. That is why I am very confident in EirGrid's ability to help make this happen.

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