Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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266. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if he will provide give the latest information available in meeting electronic vehicle targets for 2020 in view of climate change policy; the number of such vehicles that would have to be purchased between now and 2020 to attain these targets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31206/16]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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The 2009 Renewable Energy Directive sets all Member States a binding target that at least 10% of the energy used in the transport sector must come from renewable sources by 2020. Ireland aims to meet this target mainly through the increased use of sustainable biofuels, with electric vehicles also making a small contribution. Provisional data from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland indicates that 5.7% of the energy in transport was from renewable sources as at end 2015.

Ireland's third National Energy Efficiency Action Plan to 2020, published in 2014, estimated that approximately 50,000 electric vehicles (EVs) could form part of the transport fleet in 2020. Though the rate of growth has been slower than expected, we have seen increasing numbers of EVs registered in Ireland in 2015 and 2016. However, apart from general macroeconomic considerations, technology advancement, affordability and consumer choice are the most important levers in triggering consumers to move from petrol and diesel to electric vehicles. Notwithstanding substantial exchequer support of €10,000 to each electric vehicle, the reality of a halving of the price of oil and the pace of technology improvement has  very significantly impacted  electric vehicle market penetration.

Since 2011, the Electric Vehicle Grant Scheme has been supporting and incentivising, through grants of up to €5,000, the deployment of EVs in Ireland. These grants are in addition to tax incentives such as the Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) reliefs of up to €5,000, which apply to EVs and Accelerated Capital Allowances (ACA), which allows companies to offset the cost of investment in qualifying technologies including EVs. The purchase of 1,662 new EVs has been supported since the Grant Scheme commenced. Of these, 572 have been grant aided to date this year which is an increase from 2015 when 555 were grant aided over the full year. The Grant Scheme will remain in place for 2017. In addition, it was announced in Budget 2017 last week that the VRT reliefs would continue until 2021 for Battery Electric Vehicles and until 2018 for Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles.

My Department and the Department of Transport Tourism and Sport are in the final stage of discussions to establish a Low Emissions Vehicles Task force within a matter of weeks, one of whose tasks will be to examine as a matter of priority what further actions are necessary to further stimulate EV sales and other low emission vehicles to 2020 and beyond.