Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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787. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the national policies in place with respect to solar panel farms; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5699/16]

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
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The White Paper on Energy Policy, published in December 2015 identifies the potential for solar technology in Ireland, including the development of solar photovoltaic (PV) farms.

It is widely recognised that solar PV technology has become more cost competitive for electricity generation, not only compared with other renewables but also compared with conventional forms of generation. The deployment of solar PV in Ireland has the potential to contribute to our renewable energy targets and is one of the technologies being considered in the context of the new support scheme for renewable electricity generation which is expected to be available towards the end of 2016.

The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) provides supports for the use of solar thermal heating technology to both large industry and SMEs. Households can also avail of grant support for investment in renewable energy installations, including solar thermal, under the Better Energy Homes Scheme. In addition, the current tax-based support incentives include the Employment and Investment Incentive Scheme which allows individual investors to obtain income tax relief on investments in renewable energy in each tax year. Moreover, an Accelerated Capital Allowance scheme allows companies to offset the cost of investment in qualifying renewable energy generation technologies, against their tax liabilities in year 1 rather than over a more prolonged period, thus aiding their cash flow.

Before a final decision is taken on introducing a new support scheme - which may include support for solar PV - my Department will run a public consultation, which will give all interested parties an opportunity to participate in the development of the scheme.  Subject to Government approval and State aid clearance from the European Commission, it is expected that a new scheme will be announced towards the end of 2016.

Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael)
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788. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the reason for the delay in replacing existing local authority public lighting sodium lamps with high efficiency light emitting diode, LED, units to reduce energy consumption and maintenance costs (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5757/16]

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
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Ireland has committed to improving energy efficiency by 20% by 2020 as part of our EU climate change obligations. The public sector has been set an even more challenging target of 33%. The strategic importance of public lighting for reaching this target was highlighted in the White Paper on Energy Policy, which I published in December last. Local Authorities are among the largest energy users in the public sector, and public lighting accounts for the largest part of their electricity use. Therefore, the upgrading of public lighting by Local Authorities, using proven energy efficient technologies, will be an important project in the forthcoming Public Sector Energy Efficiency Action Plan.

A National Public Lighting Steering Group was established in 2014 to provide strategic direction for the upgrading of public lighting in Ireland. The Group is chaired by the City & County Managers Association (CCMA) and includes representatives from Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) and my Department.

The Group’s work programme includes completion of an inventory of public lighting assets, working with ESB Networks to ensure the timely implementation of the necessary supporting technical requirements, and the procurement of new, energy efficient, public lighting. This tender process is scheduled for quarter one of 2017.