Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this question today. I am answering on behalf of the Minister for Transport.

It should be recognised that with its vast coastline and strong winds, Ireland has the opportunity to harness clean and renewable energy from offshore wind. This will not only reduce our emissions from electricity but also allow us to electrify and reduce our emissions in the transport sector across all modes while also reducing emissions in other sectors. Ireland has set an ambitious target of achieving 5 GW of installed offshore wind capacity by 2030, with a further 2 GW to be developed, this being earmarked for the production of green hydrogen and other non-grid uses.

As set out in the programme for Government and the Climate Action Plan 2023, the Government has a target to deliver 37 GW of offshore wind by 2050. This represents a massive development opportunity which will maximise the economic benefits at both regional and national level, with job creation and new small and medium enterprises in areas such as engineering, fabrication, transport and logistics, and other technologies.

As Deputy Stanton aware, it is recognised that there is a pressing need for Ireland to have the port capacity in place to support the development of offshore wind projects, which are vital to Ireland achieving climate change ambitions and the targets mentioned previously. A number of commercial State ports are currently progressing their plans for the provision of the required facilities to accommodate offshore renewable energy projects. This includes the Port of Cork, which has recently progressed plans to develop port infrastructure to meet the specific requirements of the offshore renewable energy sector at its Ringaskiddy facility. Once operational, the proposed development could be in a position to provide port infrastructure for marshalling and assembly for the phase 1 wind farm projects which were successful in last year's offshore renewable electricity support scheme, ORESS.

The Department of Transport engages regularly with the Port of Cork in meetings and by correspondence with respect to the port's proposed development at Ringaskiddy, both directly and also as part of the Department's regular corporate governance engagement. The Department's offshore renewable energy ports facilitation division, which was established a year ago, has visited the Port of Cork offices on a number of occasions, including twice in recent months.

In addition, officials from the Department of Transport continue to engage with all industry stakeholders with a view to maximising all financing opportunities available to Irish commercial State ports. This includes potential financing partners such as the European Union through the connecting Europe facility fund, Ireland Strategic Investment Fund and the European Investment Bank, EIB. I can confirm that the Port of Cork has applied for funding under the 2023 call for the EU's connecting Europe facility for its proposed development at Ringaskiddy. If successful, the Port of Cork can obtain up to 30% of its costs for the works. Officials in the Department of Transport assisted the port with the submission. The results of the call will be announced in June 2024. I am also pleased to announce that the Department of Transport has signed an advisory assignment with the European Investment Bank. The output of this work will be crucial in identifying how Irish ports will contribute to meeting our 2030 offshore wind targets. The Department of Transport will continue engagement with the Port of Cork with a view to supporting its proposed development at Ringaskiddy, where appropriate.

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