Réada Cronin (Kildare North, Sinn Fein)
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172. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if he will publish the instructions and environmental and biodiversity-impact requirements his Department has issued in the matter of certain storage facilities (details supplied) planned in the State; the regulator he has appointed; the stated regulations that will oversee and guide the operation of any such facilities; if he is satisfied that any such facility can guarantee operation at a standard that will not adversely affect biodiversity; if he will publish the advices on same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9425/23]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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Electricity storage, including large-scale Lithium-ion Battery Energy Storage Systems (Li-BESS), is critical in providing flexibility to the Irish electricity system by helping to increase the volume of renewable electricity on the grid. Electricity storage will also support Ireland’s legally binding decarbonisation objectives as set out in the latest iteration of the Climate Action Plan. It can also provide a wide range of other benefits, including wholesale energy price reductions and security of supply.

In that context, my Department has committed to developing an electricity storage policy with a policy framework due for publication in Q3 2023. In combination, the CRU will be reviewing the regulatory treatment of storage, including licensing, charging and market incentives which is to be completed by the end of 2023.

Planning policy and related guidelines are a matter for the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage in the first instance, and not one in which my Department would have any direct function. An Bord Pleanála and planning authorities assess individual battery storage project planning applications with recourse to all relevant policy documentation, including regional spatial and economic strategies and development plans (which must be consistent with the National Planning Framework). Principal assessment criteria, in addition to compliance with national, regional and local policies, will depend on the specific storage project under review and the proposed location, but considerations include: the most efficient use of land and infrastructure; the visual impacts of storage units; fire safety standards; and potential environmental/ecological risks posed by storage projects in proposed locations.