Mark Daly (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The reason I raised the issue is because decommissioning of petroleum infrastructure is mentioned in the legislation. The Minister of State said that the guarantee is given by a parent company. The problem with companies is that they can become insolvent. The reason we put in place the requirement for a bond in respect of the construction of housing estates is to ensure a third party insurance company or otherwise is available in the context of redress. The provision to which the Minister of State referred in his response appears to be a very cumbersome process in the context of ensuring no loss to the State. The decommissioning process is very expensive. The only motivation of petroleum companies is profit, such that a company that does not have another licence in the Irish territorial area will not be too concerned about cleaning up any mess it leaves behind. This has been, unfortunately, the experience in respect of many companies. I do not think the Minister of State or I will be around to see the consequences of this. I believe a bond is a very practical measure, one which would not put too much pressure on the industry. However, I thank the Minister of State for his reply.