David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his response. I have brought up four issues. The Port of Cork in Ringaskiddy is the only show in town after the Doyle Shipping Group withdrew from the offshore renewable energy project. Some €120 million is needed to build a quay space to support offshore renewable energy in Cork. The idea that land could also be used for space for cargo, freeing up valuable space for the construction of turbines, and the shared island fund could also be explored, with the possibility of some of that funding being used to assist the port to develop these badly needed facilities.

The Minister of State talked about all energy stakeholders. I have spoken to many of them and they are very concerned. They are concerned that this project might not go ahead. The Minister of State spoke about the €40 million, which is 30% of the infrastructure costs, which will go some of the way if it comes through. I understand it could be years before a decision is made by the EIB. I want to emphasise that planning permission is due to run out in October 2025 and the work has to start in the last quarter of this year. Will the Minister of State assure me that every effort will be made to get the funding in place to enable the port to carry out the necessary infrastructure works? Will he talk to the IDA to ask it to make land available which has been lying idle for five or ten years, so that these turbines can be constructed, and all the dreams that have been mentioned here by various Ministers in recent years can come to pass? Otherwise, this will not happen. We will lose confidence, which is important in this business.

The Minister of State has an opportunity in the few minutes left to him to give us some confidence or maybe to ask the Minister for Transport to make an announcement in the morning with respect to the confidence that is needed to enable this vitally important industry to proceed. We have been talking about offshore renewable energy for a long time. We have been talking about the potential, the sustainability, the stability and the confidence for Ireland. If this fails in Cork, it will be a deathblow for the whole country. Our competitors are moving ahead and are ahead of us as we speak.

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