Timmy Dooley (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

This House is well aware of the significance of the power generation facility at Moneypoint in west Clare and of the impact it has had on the economy of the country and on the growth and strengthening of the economy of County Clare. It has now been in operation for 34 years. It was commissioned in 1987, construction having started in 1979. It has had a very significant impact over those 42 years. There is no doubt that it secured the State's electricity supply, helping in no small way with the growth of the Irish economy out of the doldrums of the late 1980s. As I have said, it also strengthened the economy of County Clare. From the start of construction in 1979, hundreds of people were employed. Hundreds more were employed by the fledgling station. The number employed in the operation of the electricity generating facility grew to approximately 300 at its peak. All the while, contractors and external companies also provided labour to the facility. Approximately 600 people worked in the facility at its peak. People moved to the area from other parts of the country and locals were spared the outlet of emigration. Communities such as those in the major town in the west of Clare, Kilrush, in Milltown Malbay and in villages such as Kilmihil, Kilkee, Cooraclare and Lissycasey all grew and were strengthened. People settled in these areas and those communities were protected. There is scarcely a village in County Clare in which there is not someone who worked in Moneypoint at some point. It was a real driver of the local economy.

The Minister, given his expertise, will certainly know how climate change has changed everything, as do we all. Our recognition of the harmful effects of the CO2 emissions from the burning of coal has changed our outlook and the way we live our lives. It has, however, been a key plank of the Minister's policies and those of Fianna Fáil that the communities that have invested a great deal in infrastructure that is now not climate-friendly must be assisted. Nowhere needs this assistance more than Moneypoint and the west Clare area. I ask the Minister to extend just transition funding to meet the needs of those communities that, at the direction of the State, built their lives, had their families, built their homes and set their dreams and aspirations in the villages and towns in this area. We cannot allow the area to become a parked-up rust belt. We know what happens when policies like that are allowed to prevail. We saw what happened in the United States when states moved away from coal extraction and steel working. We saw the impact that had on the democracy of that country when some sought to play with it. I do not want to see the same thing happen here. I want these people to be provided with the real supports they now need.

The communities need just transition funding. The Minister will know that €77 million has been provided by the European Union for the period between 2021 and 2027.I want the money extended to that area. I also want to see the ESB play a greater role. The reality is that it has shrouded its plans in mystery and secrecy. The plant was supposed to close in 2025, but that has been brought forward because of the way electricity is now priced and the emergence of much more wind energy. The numbers have reduced dramatically. There are probably fewer than 100 people working there from a peak of 600 combined workers. We need to act now. The ESB needs to have an action plan to look to the potential of the plant to capture wind energy off the western seaboard and to see if there is potential to have a gas generation system for electricity with carbon capture and storage. As a State, we need to provide the appropriate funding to help those communities to transition from the burning of coal to finding more opportunities in the green energy sector in particular.