Brian Leddin (Limerick City, Green Party)
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10. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to develop the port infrastructure here to enable the deployment of offshore wind farms, particularly on the west coast, in view of a report finding that Belfast Harbour is the only port capable of supporting large fixed and floating wind projects; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55750/22]

Brian Leddin (Limerick City, Green Party)
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What are the Department's plans to develop port infrastructure to enable the deployment of offshore wind farms, particularly along our west coast, in light of the report by Wind Energy Ireland which found that only Belfast is suitable?

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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I welcome the contents of the national port study which was commissioned by Wind Energy Ireland. It provides a useful profile of port infrastructure and the proposed development plans of the port companies for both fixed and floating installations. Ireland has ambitious plans with regard to the development of offshore renewable energy in the seas around Ireland. This report aligns with the Government policy I published last December on the facilitation of offshore renewable energy by Irish commercial ports in identifying that a number of port facilities will be required for deployment activity and that multiple ports will be needed for operation and maintenance operations.

Delivery of the necessary infrastructure is ongoing in ports to address the requirements of industry. Ireland will potentially need to build on a phased basis four or five standard offshore renewable energy port facilities, each of which should be capable of building 500 MW of offshore renewable energy annually that will act as construction and deployment points over the next 25 to 30 years. In addition, a number of smaller ports will be required for offshore renewable energy operations and maintenance activities. A multi-port approach will ultimately allow investments that are commercially viable in the long-term to progress without undermining the ability of any port to meet its primary obligations in relation to the facilitation of international trade.

Officials in the Department have engaged with Wind Energy Ireland in relation to the study and the association along with Marine Renewable Energy Ireland. They made a presentation last month to the offshore renewable energy port's co-ordination group which is chaired by the Department of Transport.

In relation to the study recommendations directed at the Department, arrangements are already being made to facilitate a more regular exchange of views and updates between the Department and industry representative associations. With regard to funding, it is envisaged that like all port infrastructure, offshore renewable energy facilities will be funded through a combination of port revenues, EU funding and borrowing from the Irish Strategic Investment Fund, ISIF, the European Investment Bank, EIB, and other financial institutions. My Department is already engaging with the various institutions, including the European Commission, about the availability of funding for ports in providing offshore renewable energy infrastructure to meet EU and Ireland's ambitions.

In relation to other recommendations, significant work is ongoing at official level across a number of Departments to accelerate a drive delivery and to capture the longer term potential in this area.

Brian Leddin (Limerick City, Green Party)
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I thank the Minister of State for her answer. I am particularly interested in the west. Galway and Limerick have a major role to play as we develop our offshore resource. This is strongly linked to the development of rail. This issue is not just a matter of offshore renewable energy but about shifting rail freight from east to west. There is a fantastic opportunity in the Minister of State’s neck of the woods with the western rail corridor to bring that infrastructure down the coast. We have good news on the Shannon Foynes line as well. There is a fantastic opportunity for the west coast. I am concerned by the language used about developing on a phased basis. I echo the Taoiseach’s words from COP27 that we do not have a minute to lose. We need to go full steam ahead to develop this infrastructure as fast as we can. We need to move from the thinking that we develop the east coast first, then get to the south and then move to the west. We need to develop all our infrastructure as fast as possible.

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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I completely agree with the Deputy about the urgency around this. I know that all ports across the country, many of which the Minister and I have visited, are working on their own plans to tap into the opportunities in operation and maintenance in the west, for example, in Galway. With regard to Shannon Foynes, the Minister attended the launch of the port's Vision 2041 strategic review. I congratulate Shannon Foynes Port Company and Bechtel on their report, which sets out the opportunity in the Shannon Estuary as a hub for facilitating the development of offshore wind along with the production of clean fuels, including green hydrogen, ammonia and methanol.

This is a multi-port approach and our ports are positioning themselves. They are working with the Department and looking at funding opportunities, for example, the Connecting Europe Facility, CEF, to which I alluded earlier, which is potentially capable of providing funding for studies and infrastructure across our ports. There is, therefore, substantial work taking place between industry, the Department and the ports examining what is required, particularly in the run-up to the approaching auctions.

Brian Leddin (Limerick City, Green Party)
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I welcome the Minister of State’s response and I fully agree with the multi-port approach. I encourage the Government to leave no stone unturned in developing all our ports as quickly as possible. An important point to make about the development of these sports is that they are keystone projects in realising a wider and positive vision.

We in this country can be accused of siloing many of our challenges, but the ports unlock a great deal of potential for the country to shift from being a carbon-intensive society. I talk about my neck of the woods much of the time, but I will speak about the wider vision for a moment. If we can develop Foynes as an offshore hub and start to develop the west coast resource and towns like Foynes, Askeaton and Adare as well as Limerick city, the benefit will extend all the way up the west coast. The offshore renewable potential is an opportunity to achieve balanced regional development, something that the State has not achieved since its inception 100 years ago.

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy alluded to the multiport approach well. Every port has its role to play, for example, Shannon Foynes in terms of larger infrastructure development and Galway and smaller ports in terms of operations and maintenance. I am encouraged by the engagement between our ports and industry on working towards potential funding opportunities at EU level, for example, from the EIB and the ISIF.

This is a very large endeavour and is ambitious, as it has to be. As the Deputy and I both know from living on the west coast, its offshore renewable energy potential is the new oil reserve that we need to tap into. Everything that can be done is being done. Industry must work with the ports and the Department and we must ensure that our ports are best placed to tap into funding, which will be done through their engagement with industry. It is about having the right infrastructure in the right place to tap into our offshore renewable space.