Paula Butterly (Louth, Fine Gael)

The Celtic interconnector will connect the Irish electricity grid from France. The cable will have enough capacity to power up to 500,000 homes. Within the next three years, we will be importing from France and Britain. Indeed, the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, said this year that the interconnector is a major strategic infrastructure project that will play an important role in Ireland's energy security, which is expected to be operational by 2028. This is absolutely great news, but is it not time that the grown ups had a conversation about developing our own nuclear capacity? Nuclear fusion energy is still in the early stages, but it could be an energy source of the future. It is important that Ireland be prepared to incorporate nuclear energy early so that it can potentially transition to fusion reactors in the future.

For a moment, let us acknowledge, perhaps, the negative aspects of nuclear energy. I believe that is essentially fear of what people thought about nuclear energy in the past. Let me also point out the reasons for nuclear energy. The fluctuations of energy production are a key issue for renewables. In order to keep a steady power flow, grid operators currently have to turn to other sources such as fossil fuels when demand exceeds the supply generated by renewables. Small modular reactors could indeed be our future. The average SMR is designed to operate for 60 years, with minimal maintenance, which means fewer disruptions and a stable energy output. The Irish Academy of Engineers has called for nuclear energy through SMRs in the future to ensure we can cope with our growing energy dependence and our goals of reducing to net zero carbon emissions.

The programme for Government commits to exploring funding models for the renewable electricity support scheme and the public service obligation levy, which would help reduce electricity bills for households and businesses. There are opportunities we cannot ignore. Therefore, we must explore nuclear energy as our future.

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