Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Carlinn Hall in Dundalk is one of these communal district heating systems with in or around 200 homes. The fact is that at the minute, the prices have risen. We are now talking approximately 42 cent per kWh. Frontline Energy provides heat. I have dealt with the Ministers and the Department. It looks like the long-term fix is the possibility of biomass or geothermal energy. We need to ensure we have the grant schemes that can deliver on that. While I would like to see a cap, I definitely think we have to facilitate making available electricity credits to these people. We should also possibly look at the idea of a business energy support scheme. Were Frontline able to avail of it once delivered, the savings could be passed on to those people who are obviously under incredible pressure. The long-term fix is already under way but we need a short-term fix to get people through what will be a brutal winter.

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