John McGahon (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House to take this Commencement matter. I raise it because the idea and commitments on this issue in the programme for Government are excellent. If we can imagine it in layman's terms, it is the concept of people being able to put solar panels on their homes and businesses and farmers being able to diversify into this area by using some of their land for solar power. They would then be able to take the energy generated and sell it back to the national grid. A middle of the road type of person who is environmentally conscious but might be not into climate action or energy as much as other people could look at this and see how he or she could play a part and make some money on the side at the same time. People can do this by applying for a grant, putting a solar panel on their roof and selling the energy back into the grid. It is a great idea and it is good that we will do this.

What are the timelines for the Government introducing this proposal? The problem with the renewable electricity support scheme, RESS, 1 projects being pushed by this is that they are not being delivered at the rate needed if we are to achieve some of our targets. We have not seen any proper work programmes from EirGrid or ESB Networks. Every delay of a day is a day longer. I am hoping to get the Government's view on where its timelines are, what it wants to do about this and how quickly we can deliver these projects. When can we get this set up in such a way that we get the ball moving quickly? I believe we are getting bogged down in the technicalities.

I said earlier that the clock is ticking on this, which means a loss of revenue. It is harming the financial model and the underpinning of the RESS 1 projects. The delivery of the projects is being slightly delayed by this inflexible and rigid process. What pressure is the Government putting on EirGrid and ESB Networks to deliver this network in the first instance in order that people can sell electricity back into the grid?

When I looked at some of the grid integration barriers in a European context, I wondered whether we face the same problems here. For example, solar PV project developers report a general issue with the availability of grid capacity across the Continent. That is something we need to consider here. One of the key reasons for that problem is the insufficient level of investment in grids. What level of investment will the Government introduce? Where investment happens, it is not always targeted at the most optimised technologies. The Government needs to be concerned about that as well.

Another issue is the limited development of the flexibility of resources. Where we can address the need for grid reinforcement and optimise investment levels, solar technology such as batteries and girders has the potential to provide new energy to grid - flexible feed-in reactive power. These services can do a lot to support grid stability in the first instance. I am getting into the technical side. These are a couple of points I looked up in respect of the European Continent.

What I am seeking today is the Government's overall plan on this project, its timelines and what it hopes to achieve. This is an excellent project and I am right behind it, as is everyone else, but I would appreciate some clarification from the Minister of State.

Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
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It is always a pleasure and an honour to be here in the Seanad. I thank the Senator for raising this important issue, which I am very happy to address on behalf of the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, who cannot be here.

Under the programme for Government and the Climate Action Plan 2019, Ireland has adopted a target of at least 70% renewable share in electricity production by 2030, including up to 1.5 GW of solar.This will contribute to meeting the Government target of reducing Ireland's greenhouse gas emissions by 51% by 2030 and meeting the long-term target of climate neutrality by 2050. The higher level of ambition set in the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill will be reflected through a new set of policies and measures in the 2021 climate action plan. A public consultation is currently under way and we are looking for expert evidence from scientists, and input from householders, citizens and communities to help chart that journey to carbon neutrality.

The Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications is supporting the rapid deployment of renewable energy projects and the efficient connection of onshore wind, solar and offshore projects through regular competitive auctions under the renewable electricity support scheme, RESS, as well as through enhanced regulatory rules for connecting projects to the grid and modernisation of our offshore planning system. Solar energy projects were a key part of the success of the first RESS auction held last year, accounting for more than 60% of the successful capacity. The programme for Government commits to building on this success by ensuring that greater shares of our electricity needs are met through solar power through the development of a solar energy strategy for rooftop and ground-based photovoltaics. Detailed work is under way in the Department on the planning and design of the second RESS onshore auction and it is anticipated that a large volume of solar projects will be eligible to compete in it. A timetable will be published in the coming months, which will set out the key milestones in the competition, including consultation on the terms and conditions, the qualification process and the auction bidding window. Those are major projects that will come through auction.

Regarding solar community energy projects, two significant challenges to the development of community energy in Ireland have traditionally been the route to market and access to grid. I am pleased to reflect now on the substantive progress on both issues. A new route to market has been provided for communities within the RESS, in which the first auction included a dedicated community projects category. Seven projects were selected for support. It is the Minister, Deputy Ryan's, intention that communities all over the country should be able to generate electricity and reap the benefits in their own localities from the sale of that electricity. He aims to ensure the delivery of 100 community electricity generation projects by 2030. To ensure an adequate pipeline of such projects, the Minister has allocated an additional €3 million in capital funding this year for the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, to stimulate locally-owned community energy projects. This funding will enable the SEAI to deploy a range of capacity-building supports, including information dissemination, trusted intermediary and adviser services and financial supports such as enabling grants. The initial elements of this service are up and running, such as a dedicated phone line and an appointed trusted intermediary.

Grid connection policy, administered by the independent energy regulator, the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, CRU, has recently opened up a simplified process for communities seeking connection to the national grid for community projects. This is known as the enduring connection policy. It provides for a separate strand within the framework process, facilitating 15 community projects a year. Both the grid process and the RESS route to market will facilitate more community solar projects in the coming years.

The programme for Government commits to expanding and incentivising microgeneration, including roof-top solar energy to help citizens generate their own renewable electricity and to sell it back to the grid in 2021. A microgeneration working group, chaired by the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, is developing an enabling framework for microgeneration that tackles existing barriers and establishes suitable supports within relevant market segments. The proposed support mechanism was outlined in a public consultation, which closed for submissions on 18 February, and the submissions received are being reviewed. While the primary aim of a microgeneration scheme is to enable a household to meet its own electricity needs, it is envisaged that a suitable payment for excess electricity generated on-site and exported to the grid will be available to all microgenerators in the second half of 2021, subject to regulatory arrangements, in line with Articles 21 and 22 of the recast renewable energy directive.

The CRU published an updated roadmap for the clean energy package's electricity and renewables directives in February, which provides for a public consultation on the regulatory framework for consumer development later this year. The document is available on the commission's website. The commission is also reviewing the connection policy for microgeneration in the 12 kW to 50 kW range under the existing provisions of its enduring connection policy to assess how to facilitate greater numbers and ease of connections.

John McGahon (Fine Gael)
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That is an excellent, detailed response, which I was hoping the Minister of State would bring to the House. I thank him. It is good to see that the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage is going to review the existing planning exemptions for rooftop solar panels and that it will be brought before the Joint Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage in the next couple of months. That is exactly what I hoped to hear because that is what I am talking about.I want to know how can Joe Soap or the average person be able to do that. It is important that we review the planning side and that the Department is able to look at it.

Finally, it is great to see that the timeline will be published in the next couple of months about the consultation period and the terms and conditions. It is really great to see that the Department has already got the RESS 2 side working towards it too. I thank the Minister of State for the response and it is exactly what I hoped for.

Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
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I thank the Senator. Yes, and we need all three elements. We need large-scale renewables connected to the grid. We need community renewables. We need people to have a sense of ownership and a sense that their community owns the local generation capacity. We also need a situation where people, when they are not at home, can sell their electricity back to the grid when they feel that it makes more sense.

I want to state that the Government is committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 and an annual reduction of 7% in overall greenhouse gas emissions to 2030, including through maximising the amount of renewable energy on the grid. Future advances in system flexibility, technology, diversity, including solar, onshore and offshore wind, hydro and ocean, microgeneration and storage technologies, as well as regional and international connection, will enable very high levels of renewable electricity on our grid. This is a challenge and at the same time an opportunity for Government agencies, industry and stakeholders to work together to deliver a net zero economy and meet the ambitions set out in the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill. The forthcoming climate action Bill later this year will further step up our ambitions with the necessary actions to ensure that the cross-Government effort that is required is being implemented and monitored effectively.

Pat Casey (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for his reply and I am sorry for having to cut him short earlier.