Martin Ferris (Kerry North, Sinn Fein)
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Question 350: To ask the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources if he will provide an undertaking that the decision regarding the location to process gas found in the Dunquin and Spanish Point fields will not be left as a matter for the operator of these fields, but will adhere to a model for the exploitation of these resources which has community consent as its guiding principle. [3472/07]

Martin Ferris (Kerry North, Sinn Fein)
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Question 351: To ask the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources if the oil and natural gas from the Dunquin and Spanish Point prospects is to be refined and pressurised at sea; if it is to be piped to Mayo to be refined at the disputed Shell terminal site on the bog at Bellanaboy; and if a plan exists for the resources be piped to a location in Kerry to be refined onshore. [3473/07]

Noel Dempsey (Meath, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 350 and 351 together.

The Dunquin prospect is still being explored and, as yet, no discovery, commercial or otherwise, has been made. Seismic data was acquired over the prospect last year and subject to positive results it is hoped that an exploration well will be drilled there in the next couple of years. No wells have been drilled on the structure to date.

Spanish Point was drilled by Phillips Petroleum in 1981 and flowed small amounts of oil and gas on test. Both the original operator and a subsequent operator, who both relinquished licences over the area, viewed the discovery as non-commercial. The present operator is seeking to show that Spanish Point may contain larger volumes of hydrocarbons and therefore warrant the drilling of an appraisal well. At this stage no decision has been made with regard to drilling such a well. Therefore the question of either Dunquin or Spanish Point containing commercial amounts of oil or gas is hypothetical at this stage.