Written answers

Wednesday, 20 July 2016

Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources

Renewable Energy Generation Targets

Photo of Bernard DurkanBernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

401. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the progress to date towards reaching targets arrived at by the previous Administration in respect of renewable energy with a view to meeting Ireland's international commitments within time and target; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23092/16]

Photo of Denis NaughtenDenis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The 2009 EU Renewable Energy Directive set Ireland a legally binding target of meeting 16% of our energy requirements from renewable sources by 2020 and in order to meet this target, Ireland is committed to meeting 40% of electricity demand from renewable sources, 12% renewables in the heating sector and 10% in transport. The Government has adopted a range of support measures designed to meet our binding target, and although good progress towards our target has been made to date, meeting the 16% target remains challenging. Provisional data from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) indicates we had reached 9.2% of the overall 16% target at the end of 2015.

In the electricity sector the primary support mechanisms introduced for renewable electricity are the Alternative Energy Requirement (AER) schemes and the Renewable Energy Feed-In-Tariff (REFIT) schemes. These schemes have proved successful at incentivising the development of the renewable electricity generation capacity necessary to meet our 40% renewable electricity target, and the SEAI estimate for 2015 is that 25.3% of electricity demand was met by renewable sources.

In the heating sector, my Department is working on the introduction of a new Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) to support the deployment of renewable energy in the sector. The primary aim of the RHI is to build on the progress already made in heating and to help reach our 12% target by 2020. In 2015, it is estimated that 6.8% of heat was derived from renewable sources.

In the transport sector, Ireland aims to meet our renewable target mainly through the increased use of sustainable biofuels, with electric vehicles also making a small contribution.  In 2015, 5.7% of our energy needs in the transport sector were met from renewable sources.

The Energy White Paper, Ireland's Transition to a Low Carbon Energy Future, published in December last, sets out a vision for transforming Ireland's fossil-fuel based energy sector into a clean, low carbon system by 2050, while the Programme for Government also sets out important objectives in the energy sector that build on this vision.  The clear focus of my Department is on implementing the range of actions that are aimed at meeting our energy and climate change targets.

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.