Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)

I take the Senator's point about getting the right location. Any sites have to have the appropriate amount of wind. They have to be elevated or at least in a wind tunnel. Local authorities over the past ten to 15 years, through the development of county development plans, have identified areas - certainly in the county that I know best - suitable for wind energy development. In some instances, it was passed with the acquiescence of the councillors at the time and then the councillors took a different view when an element of opposition came into play. It is very difficult to get the matrix right.

I know from my experience in the Department that we have a real issue as a country in meeting future demand from an electricity supply perspective. It is significant. We see the concerns about the difficulty in attracting inward investment, data centres and how important they are to our economic development. We need more energy. It has to be clean, without oil, coal or gas. It is going to be a challenge for the years ahead; in the next five to six years we will have to grapple with that. I take the Senator's point into account and thank her for making it.