Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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196. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the extent of new oil, gas or other mineral finds arising from exploration on foot of licences issued over the past five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40869/14]

Joe McHugh (Donegal North East, Fine Gael)
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There have been no commercial discoveries of oil or gas within the territory of the State in the last five years. Ireland, however, has witnessed a positive upswing in the level of petroleum exploration activity in recent years, in particular acquisition of new seismic data. We need to see this translate into an increased level of exploration drilling in the coming years, if Ireland’s true petroleum potential is to be realised In a similar manner, while the number of active minerals prospecting licences indicate the buoyant state of mineral exploration in Ireland, no new commercially viable deposits of minerals have been discovered in the last five years although there have been some encouraging results, particularly in Counties Limerick and Clare. However, it is too early to determine whether these results will lead to identification of commercially viable deposits or to estimate the economic benefits that might accrue.