Results 8,481-8,500 of 13,375 for speaker:Pat Rabbitte

Written Answers — Alternative Energy Projects: Alternative Energy Projects (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: Under the 2001/77/EC Directive, Ireland was assigned a renewable electricity target of 13.2% by 2010. Following extensive public consultation and consideration, it was decided that in order to reach the 2010 targets, a new scheme was necessary to deliver the build rate required to meet the renewable electricity directive target level. Experience across Europe clearly showed that feed-in...

Written Answers — Fuel Poverty: Fuel Poverty (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: Energy Affordability is a cross-cutting policy issue and tackling the root causes requires action on a number of fronts across Government and across Agencies. Energy poverty is caused by interaction between energy prices, thermal inefficiency of the home and income. Action to mitigate energy poverty has traditionally focused on providing assistance through the fuel schemes operated by the...

Written Answers — Onshore Exploration: Onshore Exploration (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: I propose to take Questions Nos. 23 and 80 together. I am aware that concerns have been expressed, both locally and internationally about the potential impact of hydraulic fracturing on the environment and I take these concerns seriously. I would, however, like to make clear that my Department has not received applications for, nor licensed the use of hydraulic fracturing in the Irish...

Written Answers — Energy Policy: Energy Policy (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: Overall energy policy objectives, including the regulatory framework, aim to deliver a secure, sustainable and competitive energy supply for the economy and all consumers. In delivering these objectives, the regulatory framework must meet evolving energy policy challenges and also ensure compliance with the requirements of EU and national energy legislation. The regulation of the electricity...

Written Answers — Petroleum Extraction: Petroleum Extraction (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: I am aware that concerns have been expressed about the potential impact of hydraulic fracturing and I take these concerns seriously. I would like to make clear, however, that my Department has not received applications for, nor licensed the use of hydraulic fracturing in the Irish onshore at this time. In February of this year, onshore Licensing Options were awarded to three companies over...

Written Answers — Inland Fisheries: Inland Fisheries (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: I am advised that a recent review of fish stocks in the River Tolka in North Dublin by Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has indeed indicated the presence of numbers of juvenile wild Atlantic salmon. IFI has also previously recorded the presence of salmon in both the River Liffey and the River Dodder and continues to monitor stocks on all rivers as part of the ongoing National Salmon Monitoring...

Written Answers — Telecommunications Services: Telecommunications Services (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: Almost 5,000 applications have been received under the Rural Broadband Scheme and my Department is currently processing applications where address details need to be clarified – this is a time consuming exercise but the aim is to clear these applications over the coming weeks. On a provisional basis I can say that a total of 52 applications have been received from County Carlow and 7 of...

Written Answers — Telecommunications Services: Telecommunications Services (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: The regulation of roaming charges is an EU competency following the publication of Regulation (EC) No 717/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of the 27 June 2007 on roaming on public mobile telephone networks within the Community and amending Directive 2002/21/EC. This Regulation, as amended, imposes maximum wholesale and retail roaming prices on mobile service providers and...

Written Answers — Electricity Transmission Network: Electricity Transmission Network (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: I am not aware of EirGrid making any assertion that the savings from the proposed North-South interconnector are slightly lower but very similar to the savings from the East-West interconnector. A summary of the net savings associated with the East-West interconnector are included in the 2009 "Interconnection Economic Feasibility Report" published by EirGrid. This report examines the...

Written Answers — Electricity Transmission Network: Electricity Transmission Network (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: I propose to take Questions Nos. 85, 86 and 87 together. The discount rate used by EirGrid for investment appraisals and feasibility studies has been informed by and is consistent with regulatory determinations. The Commission for Energy Regulation recently determined the regulated real pre-tax Weighted Average Cost of Capital as 5.95%. The time horizon used by EirGrid for investment...

Written Answers — Electricity Transmission Network: Electricity Transmission Network (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: The planning, development and routing of transmission line infrastructure are a matter for EirGrid, which is the State owned body responsible for the electricity transmission system. I have no statutory function regarding the planning and construction of energy networks. In particular, I have no function regarding the Moyle electricity connector which connects Northern Ireland and Scotland....

Written Answers — Energy Resources: Energy Resources (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: Construction of the Corrib Gas Terminal at Bellanaboy is substantially completed, as are the subsea facilities at the Corrib Gas Field. The 83km offshore section of the Corrib gas pipeline has also been installed. Following the granting of a number of statutory consents earlier this year for the construction of the onshore section of the pipeline along a revised route, work on this final...

Written Answers — Telecommunications Services: Telecommunications Services (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: Under the NewERA proposals in the Programme for Government, there is a commitment to co-invest with the private sector and commercial semi-State sector to provide next generation broadband customer access to every home and business in the State. The next generation broadband task force has an important role in this regard. In June of this year I convened the task force which I chair and...

Written Answers — Mobile Telephony: Mobile Telephony (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: The provision of mobile phone networks and services is undertaken by telecommunications service providers who operate in a fully liberalised market. The regulation of telecommunications service providers, including regulatory issues surrounding mobile phone network coverage and quality, is the responsibility of the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) in accordance with its...

Written Answers — Telecommunications Services: Telecommunications Services (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: The telecommunications market in Ireland, including the provision of telecommunications infrastructure, has been fully liberalised since 1999 and since then, has been regulated by the Commission for Energy Regulation (ComReg) and its predecessor, the Office of the Director of Telecommunications Regulation. ComReg gathers data from telecommunications data service providers and publishes data...

Written Answers — Telecommunications Services: Telecommunications Services (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: The latest OECD broadband data up to June 2010 ranked Ireland 13th of 19 EU states surveyed for fixed line broadband penetration per 100 inhabitants and third of 18 EU states surveyed for wireless broadband penetration per 100 inhabitants. However, such surveys are confined to retail services only. They do not measure customised electronic services provided over leased lines or Ethernet...

Written Answers — Offshore Exploration: Offshore Exploration (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: I propose to take Questions Nos. 94 and 95 together. There have been no new commercial discoveries of oil and gas, or other minerals within the jurisdiction of the Irish State in the past twelve months. While there are no petroleum drilling operations currently in progress on or offshore within the jurisdiction of the Irish State, plans are at an advanced stage for the drilling of an...

Written Answers — Postal Services: Postal Services (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: The Government's core policy goal for the postal sector is to ensure that Irish customers, both business and residential, enjoy competitively priced, high quality postal services. The Communications Regulation (Postal Services) Act 2011, which was enacted in August 2011, has put in place a robust and appropriate regulatory framework for the postal services market, which will offer certainty...

Written Answers — Energy Resources: Energy Resources (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: Petroleum exploration in Ireland, in common with most other jurisdictions, is carried out by private enterprise under licence from the State. Petroleum exploration authorisations are issued under the Petroleum and Other Minerals Development Act 1960 and the operational framework is set out in the Licensing Terms for Offshore Oil and Gas Exploration, Development & Production 2007. In...

Written Answers — Energy Prices: Energy Prices (19 Oct 2011)

Pat Rabbitte: I do not have a statutory function in the setting of energy prices, whether in the regulated or unregulated market. Responsibility for the regulation of the electricity and gas markets is a matter for the Commission for Energy Regulation, CER, which is an independent statutory body. Prices in the retail electricity market are now fully deregulated and from 1 October 2011 gas residential...