Joe Neville (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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26. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the Government’s long-term plan for ensuring a reliable and clean flexible power system to back up wind energy generation, particularly as Ireland continues to increase its dependence on wind power to meet climate targets. [18004/25]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal East, Fianna Fail)
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The Programme for Government commits to taking decisive action to radically reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and to achieve a 51% reduction in emissions from 2018 to 2030, and to achieving net-zero emissions no later than 2050.

In addition, the Government set out a vision in the 'Energy Security in Ireland to 2030' strategy to move away from fossil fuels to an electricity led energy system. Delivery of our ambitious renewable and electrification targets set out in the Climate Action plan will also be key in this regard.

A key input into moving away from fossil fuels in the electricity led energy system is a study that is underway by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) examining decarbonisation pathways for the electricity system. This study will be completed in 2026 and will be key policy input into how we can securely move away from fossil fuel generation in an increasingly electrified economy.

Separately, my Department has commissioned an independent, peer reviewed assessment by the International Energy Agency of emerging vulnerabilities associated with the energy transition with a focus on the electricity system. This report will be published later this year and will provide a key input to my Department's policy considerations for energy security.

However, the delivery of modern flexible dispatchable generation capacity continues to be important to support a highly renewable electricity system. Notwithstanding power generation decarbonisation objectives and increasing renewable electricity targets, the variable nature of some renewable technologies currently requires that dispatchable, typically fossil fuel, generation remains crucial for ensuring security of supply.

The Government has set a target of having at least 2GW of new flexible gas-fired generation by 2030 in our Climate Action Plans to ensure secure generation of electricity at time of low renewable output and/or high demand. This new capacity is characterised by its ability to power up and down during periods of low renewable output. The new capacity displaces older, less efficient and less flexible capacity on the system which further reduces emissions overall. This new modern capacity allows for a greater system integration of a large volume of wind and solar electricity projects that displace the need to run fossil fuel plants and thus will reduce wholesale market prices.