Paddy Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is unbelievable that the Derrybrien wind farm is being dismantled. The Minister should seek a derogation from the European Union in relation to the current fines until we reach maximum energy production in this country. At a time when we are not self-sufficient in energy, it is daft that we are about to dismantle a wind farm at great cost and replace it with gas generation. The Minister should, therefore, seek a derogation from the European Commission in relation to the fines.

The Bill does not provide for joint ventures. The Minister of State might be able to enlighten us on that. There could be joint ventures between electricity generation companies all over Europe and the ESB is probably one of the best in the world. These companies have a great deal of expertise. Financial houses may also be interested in joint ventures at this point. We have fallen behind, particularly along the west coast. The opportunities that exist along the west coast are very slow to take hold. There is something wrong when we only have one offshore wind energy plant in the country, which is on the east coast. There is something wrong in the Department with responsibility for energy that we have not made more ground, especially given the connections to the grid along the Shannon Estuary. We do not have wave or wind energy installations along the west coast. While it is probably difficult to do this work along the west coast because of wind speeds and the depth of the Atlantic, drastic measures are needed. I would like to see emergency legislation introduced in this area. Most people would back emergency legislation to get that into production because it could be our oil for the future. Similar to the Saudis who produce and export oil, given the assets we have along the west coast and on the mainland, we could generate electricity through wind and Atlantic waves. That potential should be looked at in the shortest possible time.

Much has been said about solar energy production for domestic purposes. It has been championed by many people but there is an enormous difference between a fine sunny day and a cloudy day. On a bad day, solar could generate only 20% of requirements. Solar panel production should be supplemented with small wind turbines. This area should be looked for domestic use. The wind blows at night as well as during the day. People have to switch on their lights at 4.30 p.m. in the wintertime here. We could get into the manufacturing of small wind turbines. In recent years, we have excelled in engineering. We have McHale Farm Machinery and Malone Engineering in Mayo and a whole host of other engineering companies the length and breadth of the country. If the Government sent a signal on energy-generating products, they would take off and be used.