John Lahart (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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174. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the projections for gas imports in the next decade; the main source of gas imported here; if the use of indigenous resources has been considered as opposed to imported gas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36178/20]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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In 2019 natural gas use in Ireland was 53 TWh which is equivalent to over 30% of our primary energy requirements. Indigenous production from the Corrib and Kinsale gas fields supplied an estimated 47% of this demand with the remaining 53% imported via two interconnector pipelines from Moffat in Scotland.

Ireland's National Energy and Climate Plan, published in August, sets out projections for natural gas production and use in Ireland. Based on these projections, it is expected that natural gas demand will increase by circa 10% to 15% by the middle of the decade before dropping back to current levels by 2030. The increased demand in the near term is primarily driven by the growth in electricity demand along with natural gas replacing coal, peat and oil in electricity generation. The reduction in the second half of the decade is expected as a result of increased levels of renewable electricity displacing generation from natural gas.

The National Energy and Climate Plan projections indicate that by 2025 circa 80%, and by 2030 over 90%, of the natural gas consumed in Ireland will be imported via the two pipelines from Scotland. The expected reduction in domestic production is a result of the closure of the Kinsale gas field earlier this year, the forecast decline in production from the Corrib gas field and the Programme for Government commitment to end the issuing of new licences for the exploration and extraction of natural gas.

The National Energy and Climate Plan set a target of 1.6 TWh of natural gas use (equivalent to 3% of total use) to be replaced by biomethane produced from agriculture and food waste and injected into the gas grid by 2030. My Department is currently considering a number of policy options to support the production of biomethane.

It should be noted the National Energy and Climate Plan is based on the commitments set out in the Climate Action Plan published in 2019. The implementation of the commitments set out in the Programme for Government may result in reductions in the level of natural gas use over the coming years and thereby lowering the level of import dependency.

Finally, I would note that my Department is carrying out a review of the security of energy supply of Ireland’s electricity and natural gas systems which is focusing on the period to 2030 in the context of ensuring a sustainable pathway to 2050. The review will include a detailed technical analysis and a public consultation. A request for tender for the technical analysis was published earlier this month and I expect that the review to be completed by the end of 2021.