Results 81-100 of 25,406 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Illegal Dumping (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Under the Waste Management Act, the primary responsibility for management and enforcement responses to illegal dumping lies with the local authorities. It is a matter for each local authority to determine the most appropriate awareness, enforcement, clean-up and disposal actions in relation to illegal dumping, taking account of local circumstances and priorities. As such, my Department does...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Electricity Grid (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: CSO data released in July 2024 showed a 20% increase in data centre energy consumption between 2022 and 2023, accounting for 21% of total electricity consumption. This growth in data centre energy consumption was anticipated. The CSO’s growth estimate for data centre energy consumption is in line with Ireland’s transmission system operator’s (EirGrid) projections,...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Renewable Energy Generation (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The Programme for Government reaffirms Ireland’s ambitious targets of 9 GW of onshore wind capacity, 8 GW of solar capacity and at least 5 GW of offshore wind capacity connected to the grid by 2030 in order to meet the requirement of 80% of electricity demand supplied by renewables. The Accelerating Renewable Electricity Taskforce has been established to identify and prioritise the...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Policy (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: In line with CAP Action EL/24/16, the Electricity Storage Policy Framework for Ireland (ESPF) was published by my Department in July 2024. The policy framework included 10 Government actions to support the role of electricity storage systems in Ireland’s energy transition. Actions #6 to #10 of the policy framework are designed to stimulate the development of the optimum level of...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Conservation (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Ireland has one of the most ambitious home retrofit targets in the world. The National Retrofit Plan sets out how these targets will be met, including an €8 billion financial allocation out to 2030. A range of measures have been introduced under the Retrofit Plan in recent years to support the achievement of our targets, including: Enhanced SEAI grant schemes with simplified...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Conservation (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The Climate Action Plan 2023 includes a requirement for public bodies to develop a building stock plan to critically review its building portfolio in the context of the sector's targets and its long-term accommodation needs. This will inform a strategic approach to managing relevant buildings over the next decade, and beyond. In addition, public bodies are required to complete the...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Air Quality (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The national air quality monitoring network is operated, maintained, and monitored by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Programme (AAMP), which is funded by my Department. As competent authority under the EU Ambient Air Quality Directive, the EPA decides the most appropriate locations for monitors based on best practice and EU requirements....

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Prices (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Electricity and gas retail markets in Ireland operate within a European regulatory regime wherein these markets are commercial, liberalised, and competitive and are overseen by the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities (CRU). Price setting by energy suppliers is a commercial and operational matter for the companies concerned. The Government has made a number of important commitments...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Policy (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The All-Island Resource Adequacy Assessment (AIRAA) is an electricity system security study that assesses the balance between electricity generation capacity and electricity demand over the next ten years. The recently published AIRAA 2025-34 shows an improved picture for Ireland's generation adequacy on last years study. This improvement is due to new generation capacity additions, an...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Policy (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Dublin City Council (DCC) is working to develop a large project that will use waste heat from the Dublin Waste to Energy facility in Poolbeg to heat public sector, commercial and residential buildings in the adjacent area, with plans to progressively expand into Dublin city. This project is strategically important for Ireland, and both national and international district heating experts...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Data Centres (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: District heating is a proven technology that can play a key role in improving energy efficiency and reducing emissions in the heat sector. Government policy recognises the contribution that district heating can make to Ireland’s climate and goals goals. This is underpinned by the findings of the SEAI's 2022 National Heat Study, which highlighted significant potential for heat in...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Electricity Generation (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The All-Island Resource Adequacy Assessment (AIRAA) is an electricity system security study that assesses the balance between electricity generation capacity and electricity demand over the next ten years. The recently published AIRAA 2025-34 shows an improved picture for Ireland's generation adequacy on last years study. This improvement is due to new generation capacity additions, an...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Telecommunications Infrastructure (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: In December 2022, Ireland's Digital Connectivity Strategy was published which supports the ambition outlined in the National Digital Strategy and set out a number of targets including that all Irish households and businesses will be covered by a Gigabit network no later than 2028. The Programme for Government 2025 includes a commitment to “Maintain support to the Mobile Phone and...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Official Engagements (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: I am briefed regularly by my officials, as appropriate, on developments in relation to significant infrastructural projects related to my Department.

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Telecommunications Infrastructure (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Following the damage caused to the telecoms networks by Storm Éowyn, on 14 February my colleague Minister O’Donovan met with senior executives of both mobile and fixed telecoms providers to reflect on the lessons to be learned, and measures to be considered to build further resilience into telecommunications networks to avoid, where feasible and practicable, a reoccurrence of the...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Policy (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The All-Island Resource Adequacy Assessment (AIRAA) is an electricity system security study that assesses the balance between electricity generation capacity and electricity demand over the next ten years. The recently published AIRAA 2025-34 shows an improved picture for Ireland's generation adequacy on last year’s study. This improvement is due to new generation capacity additions,...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Wind Energy Generation (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Work is ongoing in my Department to develop both offshore and onshore wind energy strategies. The Future Framework for Offshore Renewable Energy, published in May 2024, lays out Ireland’s strategy for developing Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE), including wind, post-2030. Ireland has set ambitious targets in this area, which will mostly consist of fixed offshore wind in the...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Reports (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department engaged CEPA (Cambridge Economic Policy Associates Ltd) to carry out an updated analysis of security of energy supply in Ireland covering the period beyond 2030 and up to 2040. This study builds on CEPA’s technical analysis of the security of supply of Ireland’s electricity and natural gas systems up to 2030, published in September 2022, that helped inform the...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Strategies (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: In December 2022, Ireland's Digital Connectivity Strategy was published which supports the ambition outlined in the National Digital Strategy and set out a number of targets including that all Irish households and businesses will be covered by a Gigabit network no later than 2028. The Programme for Government – Securing Ireland’s Future published in January 2025 sets a number...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Waste Management (10 Apr 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Under the Waste Management Act, the primary responsibility for management and enforcement responses to illegal dumping lies with the local authorities. It is a matter for each local authority to determine the most appropriate awareness, enforcement and clean-up actions in relation to illegal dumping taking account of local circumstances. In that context it would be a matter for Cork City...