Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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114. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the capital funding that has been provided to prepare Ireland’s ports for ORE in each of the years 2020 to 2024, and to date in 2025. [28210/25]

Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent)
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As per the current National Ports Policy, the Commercial State Ports do not receive exchequer funding. These ports are self funding and operate as independent commercial entities that are expected to compete with one another on a commercial basis. Nevertheless, my department is firmly committed to facilitating our Commercial State Ports in their plans as enablers of the offshore renewable energy (ORE) industry.

Indeed, the development of port infrastructure is a core objective of the National Offshore Wind Delivery Taskforce (OWDT) and the Department of Transport works in collaboration with other government departments to identify and reconcile any issues and work towards the development of the ORE industry in Ireland.

In 2021, the Department of Transport published a policy statement on the facilitation of ORE by commercial ports in Ireland. This policy statement recognises the central role that ports will play during both the Marshalling and Assembly (M&A) and Operations and Maintenance (O&M) phases of ORE development. As such, the statement encourages all ports to proactively engage with the ORE industry and look towards potential development opportunities. Since the publishing of the policy statement, a dedicated ORE Ports Facilitation Division has also been established in my department. This Division works to facilitate the Commercial State Ports as they progress their infrastructure plans to service the industry. The Division also acts as the liaison with the OWDT and works to ameliorate any issues that arise between the industry and the ports.

Concerning the capital required to prepare the ports for ORE, my department is working actively to maximise potential financing and funding opportunities for the Commercial State Ports. This includes potential financing partners such as the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF), which is a sovereign investment fund with a mandate to invest on a commercial basis to support economic activity and employment in Ireland.

Ports designated as core and comprehensive nodes on the EU’s Trans-European Transport Network can apply for funding under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) fund. Under the 2023 call for CEF funding, officials in my department provided critical feedback and guidance on the CEF applications. I was delighted to see that in 2024 the Port of Cork was successful in its application for CEF funding, receiving €38.5 million for developments at Ringaskiddy which will allow the port to facilitate the deployment of Phase One offshore wind projects. This funding, along with a substantial financing agreement of €88.5 with ISIF will allow the Port of Cork to pursue its development plans, the first phase of which is presently under construction and is expected to be complete in Q4 2025. This CEF funding and ISIF investment has brought certainty to the construction of additional facilities at Ringaskiddy. The Port of Cork will therefore become the first port in the state capable of hosting large-scale marshalling and assembly requirements of offshore wind projects.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) represents another potential financing partner for Irish ports. The EIB is currently providing advisory services to several Irish ports on behalf of the Department of Transport. As part of this advisory assignment, the EIB is conducting several analyses on ORE port capacity and port financing in Ireland. The results of the study are expected to contribute to a greater understanding of potential financing options for ports. These reports, along with the bilateral advisory services, will assist the development of business cases for the ports’ ORE infrastructure plans.

My department also chairs an ORE Ports Co-Ordination Group to facilitate consistent engagement with key stakeholders on ports’ progress with their ORE projects. The group meets on a quarterly basis and not only allows for ports to engage directly with the Department of Transport but other key government departments relevant to the delivery of ORE. My department will continue to encourage and assist applicable ports with applications for funding under CEF while also ensuring that Irish State Commercial Ports maximise all financing options available to them.