Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael)
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618. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment his views on a matter (details supplied) regarding pass through charges; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12732/20]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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As the Deputy points out, there are a number of pass through costs that are applied to customer’s bills and these are set out in detail in a recent Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) information paper at:- .

Addressing in turn each specific pass through cost raised by the Deputy, network charges pass through elements are applied for the use of the electricity transmission and distribution systems and designed to recover the total costs involved in operating, maintaining and developing the transmission and distribution networks. These charges are regulated by the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) and are entirely a matter for the CRU as independent regulator under the regulatory legislative framework. I have no function in relation to these charges.

The Public Service Obligation (PSO) levy has been in place since 2001 and is the overall support mechanism for various national policy objectives, particularly focussed on the development of renewable electricity. It is designed to compensate electricity suppliers for the additional costs they incur by purchasing electricity generated by these producers.  The PSO levy has been vital in enabling significant progress to be made on the 2020 40% national target for renewable electricity and will continue to be so for the 70% target in the Climate Action Plan. Over the years, increases in the total amount of the PSO being passed though annually to electricity consumers have been associated with increasing renewable electricity generation, which is national policy, as well as resulting on occasion from lower wholesale electricity prices.

The Electricity Regulation Act 1999 (Public Service Obligations) Order 2002 provides that the calculation of the PSO is a matter for CRU and also sets out the manner in which CRU is to calculate it.  CRU has recently published for consultation its proposed decision on the 2020/2021 levy, with its calculation of the levy for that year amounting to €480.11 million.  This proposed decision is available at:-

. Its final decision is due by 1st August 2020. 

More broadly, responsibility for the regulation of the electricity market is solely a matter for the CRU, which was assigned this responsibility following the enactment of the Electricity Regulation Act, 1999, and subsequent legislation.  The CRU is solely accountable to a committee of the Oireachtas for the performance of its functions, including its functions relating to the pass through charges set out above, and not to the Minister.

As regard the pass through of the electricity tax, it is an excise duty charged on all supplies of electricity and levied within the framework of the EU Energy Tax Directive. It is accordingly entirely a matter for the Minister for Finance, and not the Minister for Climate Action, Communications Networks and Transport.