Mary Upton (Dublin South Central, Labour)
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Question 46: To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if he will work with the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to address the continued decimation of the retail service station network across the country and ensure that this critical infrastructure remains an integral part of the key national infrastructure for energy security and also as a key driver of an expanding nationwide biofuels network; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23056/07]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Question 56: To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources his plans to require biofuels used in transport to comply with a new environmental certification system looking at their impacts on biodiversity and the amount of carbon reduction they achieve; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23120/07]

Emmet Stagg (Kildare North, Labour)
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Question 60: To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the measures he will introduce to improve the sustainability profile of the fuel transport sector here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23049/07]

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Question 61: To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the reason the biofuels obligation will be delayed until 2009; the measures he will introduce in the interim to accelerate the level of biofuels in the fuel mix here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23052/07]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 186: To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if he proposes to take action to encourage the development of bio-fuels such as bio-ethanol and bio-diesel; if he proposes specific measures to encourage the growth of such crops in the future; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23287/07]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 46, 56, 60, 61 and 186 together.

The Programme for Government commits to the development of an Irish biofuels industry and to the development and deployment of bio-energy generally in Ireland. In this context, the Government has announced its intention to introduce a Biofuels Obligation in 2009, which will require all fuel suppliers to ensure that biofuels represent a certain percentage of their annual fuel sales. Implementation of the obligation will require detailed consultation and development of appropriate legislation. Fuel suppliers will also require time to make the necessary logistical and supply adjustments to facilitate meeting their biofuels targets. The 2009 timeline reflects these requirements.

The obligation will build on the results of the 2005 and 2006, mineral oil tax relief schemes for biofuels, which saw a total of 18 projects being awarded excise relief between 2005 and 2010. The schemes, valued at over €200m aim to ensure that we reach an initial target of over 2% market penetration of biofuels by 2008. They were designed as interim measures to accelerate the level of biofuels in the fuel mix, in advance of the introduction of a biofuels obligation in 2009.

As a result of these schemes, biofuels are already being mainstreamed in blends of up to 5% at a number of existing petrol and diesel pumps, and higher blends are being sold to identified vehicle fleets.

One of the aims of the Biofuels Mineral Oil Tax relief schemes and the Biofuels Obligation is to mainstream the availability of biofuels within the existing fuel station supply network and provide market players with long-term certainty and a stable investment climate. The Irish oil industry is fully privatised, liberalised and deregulated. There is free entry into and out of the market. There is no price control on oil products and this is to ensure that the market is fully competitive. Current trends in the petrol station network including the development and retention of individual retail units are a matter for the commercial companies themselves, I have no statutory function in the matter.

The biofuels Mineral Oil Tax Relief schemes are complemented by a range of other support measures including a 50% VRT relief on Flexible Fuel Vehicles, which are capable of running on blends of up to 85% ethanol in petrol, and a commitment in the Bioenergy Action Plan to the introduction of a minimum requirement for the use of biofuels in State owned and public transport vehicles. Grants for the conversion of diesel engine vehicles to use Pure Plant Oil (PPO) have also been made available by Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI) and the Department of Transport. The Department of Agriculture and Food has also introduced €6m energy crop "top-up" payment of €80 per hectare on top of the existing EU Energy Crops Premium of €45 per hectare.

As we move towards higher targets for biofuels, the issue of sustainable global development of Biofuels is coming increasingly into focus. It is expected that the European Commission's forthcoming renewable energy legislative proposals, will contain targets for biofuels market penetration, subject to the introduction of sustainability criteria and the coming on stream of second-generation biofuels.

Ireland's biofuels obligation will take account of EU sustainability initiatives in relation to biofuels and I intend to work very closely with my EU colleagues in addressing this highly complex challenge for biofuels policy.