Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail)
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I welcome the Minister, Deputy Naughten. Senator Kieran O'Donnell has four minutes to outline his case.

Kieran O'Donnell (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister to the House to discuss this matter, which is one that people are starting to raise. Constituents have been approaching me about it in the past month or two. I work on the basis of, if constituents approach me about an issue, then it is an issue that requires addressing. The Minister is committed to this matter. I understand that there are approximately 1,200 charge points North and South, with 300 in the former. Eighty-five of the 1,200 are fast-charging points, with 70 in the Republic and 15 in the North.

I am raising the matter of fast-charging points on foot of a situation about which a constituent approached me. He has an electric car and drives to Dublin frequently. A fully charged electric car will do somewhere between 180 km and 200 km. He has to stop at junction 14, which he says supplies a great 20-minute service.

Other people have approached me, including someone with a forecourt garage. That person applied to get a fast-charging point through the garage's supplier but, for some reason, the supplier was turned down.

While I welcome the low-emissions vehicle task force that the Minister has established, what are his plans to expedite the roll-out of fast-charging points the length and breadth of Ireland? There is no reason for one of them not to be in a village or town. It should not be the case that such points would only be deployed at specific locations. The 70 in the Republic and 15 in the North are too few. In the UK, the Automated and Electric Vehicles Bill 2017-19 has just been published. It will make it compulsory for charge points to be installed in all UK filling stations.

All of this shows how much the issue of electric cars has advanced. The Minister might explain his plans for expediting the roll-out of a comprehensive national network of fast-charging points for electric cars.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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I thank the Senator for having his finger on the pulse. No more than his office, my constituency office is now receiving queries on electric vehicles, charging points and the national network. This is a positive development. At long last, people are beginning to see the significant benefit of electric vehicles, particularly people with two cars and relatively short commutes. The average commute is less than 50 km per day. Undoubtedly, the bulk of commutes can be travelled via electric vehicles. Sadly, my part of the country still does not have the level of employment to ensure that people do not have to commute substantial distances, but the Government is determined through supporting regional and rural development to ensure that there are jobs in our regions so that people do not have to commute to the cities.

I was interested in the Senator's point about the UK legislation.

Kieran O'Donnell (Fine Gael)
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The Minister is aware of it.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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It will feed into a task force that has been established between the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport and my Department, namely, the low-emissions vehicle task force, which I will discuss in a moment.

In May, the Government approved the publication of the National Policy Framework on Alternative Fuels Infrastructure for Transport in Ireland 2017 to 2030. This framework sets an ambitious target that, by 2030, all new cars and vans sold in Ireland will have zero emissions or be zero-emission capable. In November, my colleague, the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Ross, and I furthered this ambition by pledging to work together to ensure that all passenger cars sold in Ireland from 2030 onwards would be zero-emission vehicles, full stop.

The national policy framework recognises the benefits that electric vehicles can provide in assisting Ireland to achieve energy efficiency, renewable energy and climate mitigation targets. One of the main commitments in the framework is to ensure that levels of access to refuelling or recharging infrastructure will not act as a barrier to the uptake of alternatively fuelled vehicles. By setting minimum levels of provision for refuelling infrastructure, the framework works to provide a supportive and enabling environment for suppliers and consumers.

The provision of electric vehicle infrastructure, particularly the availability of public charging points, is a key focus of the work of the low-emissions vehicle task force. The task force is co-chaired by the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport and my Department and is examining options for infrastructure, regulation and pricing in order to devise a sustainable policy framework for effective and efficient electric vehicle recharging.Currently, there are almost 70 fast chargers in Ireland out of a total of around 900 chargers. I intend to increase that number significantly. In Budget 2018, I secured a doubling of my Department's budget for electric vehicle supports from €5 million to €10 million. A key focus for this is on increased spending in the development of the charging network, with a particular emphasis on fast chargers.

The low emissions vehicle task force is working to develop the best method for supporting the roll-out of fast chargers. In this regard, a stakeholder workshop was held last month to explore issues related to the future requirements for electric vehicle charging infrastructure. This workshop included representatives of EV owners, the motor industry, local authorities and other key stakeholders. This is a complex area. It is important not just that we meet the current needs and demands, but that we future-proof this network. A simple initiative that has been taken within my own local authority, by Roscommon County Council, is painting the parking spots for electric charging points because of the number of people who have been parking in them and blocking those up has limited the substantial network that we have across this country. For the size of our country, we have one of the most extensive networks of public electric charging points within the European Union. I accept that we need to look at the issue of fast chargers.

Early in the new year, I expect the low emissions vehicle task force to complete its work on fast chargers and recommend how best to support their roll-out. It is likely that state aid clearance will be required for any Exchequer support. As a result, I expect the roll-out of fast chargers to commence in the second half of 2018. In October of this year, the Commission for Regulation of Utilities published a decision that envisages the future operation of the charging infrastructure on a commercial basis and the sale of the infrastructure by ESB Networks in the long term. However, the continued ownership and operation of the charging network by the ESB for a transitional period of up to ten years is provided for. This will safeguard those who rely on public electric vehicle charging infrastructure and result in as little impact to the network as possible in the short to medium term.

It also enables the ESB to continue to provide electric vehicle charging across Ireland. In addition to the existing charging network and the initiatives led by my Department, large car manufacturers are also expected to become involved in the provision of high-powered infrastructure. A number of providers are likely to emerge onto the Irish market in the coming years. For example, Nissan already has a number of charge points available through its dealer network and Tesla has recently opened its first supercharger location in Ireland.

I thank Senator O'Donnell for raising this important issue. I reassure him that expansion of Ireland's fast charging network is a key priority for me. I also want to say, and this is important, from 1 January 2018 a new grant scheme is being introduced through the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, for putting in domestic charging points. Up to now for new vehicles that were purchased the ESB provided that service to the public. From 1 January 2018, that grant scheme is now going to be available for new vehicle purchases but also the purchase of second-hand electric vehicles. This has been a reason quite a number of people have been looking for charging points. A number of representations Members will have received in their offices are from constituents who are buying second-hand vehicles and who require the public charging infrastructure to charge the vehicle at the moment. They will now, if they purchase the vehicle from 1 January, be eligible to have a charging point installed in their own home.

Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail)
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We are three minutes over time, so the Senator should be very brief.

Kieran O'Donnell (Fine Gael)
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I want to thank-----

Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail)
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We have eight minutes and we have 11 done, and there are other matters backing up.

Kieran O'Donnell (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister for dealing with this. My reason for bringing this up today is that, while I welcome the home charger and the €5,000 grant, if the electric car is to be able to compete with petrol and diesel cars it must be able to drive whatever distance. I note that an electric car cannot drive from Limerick to Dublin. When in the new year does the Minister expect the low emissions task force report to be published? In terms of state aid rules, will the State get involved in ensuring that there is a proper network, how large will that be, how many power points will there be and how long before that network is place?

Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail)
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I do not think Senator O'Donnell knows how to be brief.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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The State will be getting involved in it. We do require state aid approval. I do not know how long that is going to take. It would be my intention to see some of these fast chargers installed before the end of 2018 and that ramped up in 2019. One final point is that it is not just about the financial supports and the charging infrastructure. It is also about exposing people to electric vehicle use. The SEAI, along with our Department, is developing a three-year demonstrator programme. It will go around to Limerick, Roscommon, Galway and across the country with electric vehicles to get people to test drive them, try them out and encourage them to purchase EVs.