Clare Daly (Dublin North, United Left)
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7. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources in view of the fact that the intention of the Scottish Government is that Torness and Hunterson nuclear stations will be closed and replaced by renewables energy generation, whether his view that nuclear power is an option for this country is mistaken in view of the potential for renewable energy off the coast. [3671/15]

Clare Daly (Dublin North, United Left)
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As the Minister is aware, some of the most successful developments in renewable energy have been in countries that have made a decision to end their connection with nuclear power. The question relates in this instance to Scotland, where the decision has been made to shut down nuclear power stations. Scotland has invested heavily and strategically in renewable energy. The two decisions are linked. Thus, the Minister's comments about leaving open the possibility that this country, which has up to now been nuclear-free, may turn in that direction are completely against international best practice. He might like to explain his comments.

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
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The May 2014 Green Paper on Energy Policy in Ireland covers a broad range of energy issues, including an exploration of all possible fuel options for securing a balanced, sustainable and secure energy mix. It is in this context that any current discussions on nuclear energy policy are taking place.

It is important to note that there are currently no plans to introduce nuclear power in Ireland. In fact, the use of nuclear fission for the generation of nuclear power is statutorily prohibited by the Planning and Development (Strategic Infrastructure) Act 2006, which prohibits the authorisation of development consisting of an installation for the generation of electricity by nuclear fission. The Electricity Regulation Act 1999 also makes similar provision in respect of regulatory authorisations.

The overarching objective of the Government's energy policy is to ensure secure and sustainable supplies of competitively priced energy to all consumers. The 2009 EU renewable energy directive set Ireland a legally binding target of meeting 16% of our energy requirements from renewable sources by 2020, to be achieved through 40% renewable generation in electricity, 12% in heat and 10% in transport. To date, onshore wind energy has been the most cost-effective renewable technology in the Irish electricity market, contributing most towards the achievement of the 2020 target.

However, there is also the potential to diversify our renewable electricity generation portfolio in the period to 2020 and beyond. To that end, the offshore renewable energy development plan, published in February last year, identifies the sustainable economic opportunity for Ireland, in the period to 2030, of realising the potential of our indigenous offshore wind, wave and tidal energy resources. Furthermore, the draft bioenergy plan published in October last acknowledges the role that the bioenergy sector can play in the transition to a low-carbon economy.

Clare Daly (Dublin North, United Left)
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Nuclear energy is dirty power and is on the way out in other areas, and I, like most citizens, would be happy if it never saw the light of day here. We are not focusing on where our potential might lie by even entertaining it or putting it on the list. Renewable energy creates massively more jobs per unit of energy than fossil fuels. We have examples, as I said, in Germany and in Scotland. Scotland has very similar geographic conditions to Ireland and a similar population. In 2013 there were 12,000 people employed in renewable energy there. I do not know what the figure is in Ireland, but it is roughly a couple of hundred in wind and wave, maybe 1,000 or 2,000 nationally. We could be really developing our offshore wave potential. Small businesses and big businesses are not capable of delivering. The Minister's Department would fund a broad range of small developments in wave power. At the technical readiness level, they are all scoring one, two or maybe three on a nine-point scale. Small operators cannot take it to the stage at which this type of protocol could be developed, even though the potential may be there. We need to do something a lot bigger than we may have considered before.

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
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That is the point of the consultation process in which we are engaged. That is the point of our having debate and discussions in this House and elsewhere on what we need to do in terms of addressing these huge challenges for the future. I do not disagree with much of what has been said regarding the huge potential of renewable energy production. The Deputy is absolutely right in that regard, but it would not be true to say that we are way behind the pack. In fact, we have made considerable strides. I will be in Scotland quite soon to have a look at what they are doing and to discuss aspects of this area with my colleagues there.

Deputies can disagree with me if they wish, but I have a view that if we are having a serious debate about energy, where we give ourselves a few months to look at this in the round, with all the issues raised by the Deputies on the table, as it were, and have a really clear-headed debate, we cannot start by excluding one source and saying it is out of the equation. That is the basis upon which I said we should have a comprehensive debate and assessment, make our decisions in the summer and publish in September, and I hold to that view.

Clare Daly (Dublin North, United Left)
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The point is that we have an advantage, coming a little bit late, in that we can start by adopting what is already international best practice. In Germany, 25% of energy comes from renewable sources, locally controlled in many instances. There are hundreds of thousands of jobs connected with it. We in Ireland are probably unique in a global sense in terms of our wave energy potential. There are about ten firms that various Government Departments are funding in this area. They need to be brought under Government control. The Government should buy them out, buy the intellectual property rights, and employ the people to develop the ideas to the next stage on the model. This development requires millions of euro. That is why even big companies such as Pelamis, Wavebob, Oceanlink, and Aquamarine have gone into receivership. Private industry is not capable of developing this potential. It needs to be brought in under the ESB, perhaps, or another area, to look at how we can harness what could be one of the most exciting international developments in renewable energy off our coast.

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
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The Deputy cannot seriously say that the private sector will not have a significant role, particularly in an area such as offshore energy. The amount of money that is required - and I ask the Deputy to take this from me on trust - in terms of the investment base needed for these offshore projects is not in the millions; it is in the billions. I do not disagree with what the Deputy says at all in terms of her view of the future and her positive approach to it, but the idea that the State has the resources to develop these projects, even at the level of research, is a bit fanciful.

Clare Daly (Dublin North, United Left)
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The State should lead development. The millions I referred to were for research. The Minister did not listen.