Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Independent)
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59. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the procedures adopted by Ireland to transpose Article 16(5) of the RED III Directive, which requires that applicants and the public have easy access to simple procedures for the settlement of disputes concerning the permit-granting procedure and the issuance of permits to build and operate renewable energy plants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [60294/25]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal East, Fianna Fail)
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Ireland is actively taking steps to transpose the third Renewable Energy Directive (RED III, EU Directive 2023/2413) as soon as possible. RED III stipulates requirements for the permit-granting procedure for renewable energy projects, in addition to requirements designed to support the increased deployment of renewable energy across the electricity, heat and transport sectors, as well as in industry and buildings.

The RED III permitting requirements are designed to streamline and accelerate the permit-granting process for renewable energy projects. Implementation of the permitting requirements of RED III requires coordinated action across the planning system and connection to the grid. Ireland has undertaken, and continues to undertake, a range of measures to support compliance with the RED III permitting requirements.

In respect of Article 16(5), in so far as it applies to the planning system, Chapter 1 of Part 9 of the Planning and Development Act of 2024 was commenced on 13 August 2025 as part of the ongoing phased implementation of the Act of 2024. Chapter 1 concerns procedures through which judicial reviews may be undertaken, addressing particular matters such as time limits for commencing proceedings, legal standing to take such proceedings and various procedural rules relating to such proceedings. Section 281 of the Planning and Development Act 2024 also provides a time limit of 8 weeks applicable to Part 9 judicial review and provides that the High Court may alter that timeline in appropriate circumstances. Section 37 of the Planning and Development Act 2000 provides for an applicant to appeal the decision of a planning authority to An Coimisiún Pleanála. Section 126(2) provides an objective for appeals to be dealt with within 18 weeks.

A new Environmental and Planning Division of the High Court was also established in December 2023, with the intent to provide efficient processing of cases that are specific to the planning and environment context.

In respect of Article 16(5) as it relates to connection to the grid, parties who have a statutory right to be connected to the transmission or distribution systems have a right under Section 34(6)(a) of the Electricity Regulation Act 1999 as amended to refer a dispute they may have with either the transmission system operation or the distribution system operator to the CRU for resolution.

The CRU has a clear and well-established process in place for dealing with disputes efficiently and fairly which is set out in the Section 34(6) Dispute Guidelines document on the Network Connections page of its website. This includes disputes involving the grid connection permit granting process.

If the CRU decides to refuse an Authorisation to Generate or Licence to Construct, the applicant will be notified in writing of the reasons for the refusal and will be informed of the appeals process as per Part IV, Sections 29 to 32 of the Electricity Regulation Act 1999 as amended.