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will be using one third of our electricity by the end of this decade. Over the past five years, all of the additional wind energy produced in Ireland has been more than outstripped by data centre growth. The programme for Government gives the green light for even more

Pádraig O'Sullivan - To discuss provision of an ASD class at Scoil Eoin, Ballincollig. Deputy Claire Kerrane - To discuss the long-awaited new wind energy guidelines. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman - To discuss the regulation of airborne drones used for commercial delivery purposes. Deputy Naoise Ó Muirí - To discuss

Minister since 2011, including former Minister Phil Hogan. We do not have proper guidelines for wind farms. I am in favour of wind and solar energy. I do not believe in this thing of "No wind farms, no solar energy". We should have them but the Minister … nearly a decade. Communities need some say and some protection. Society needs electricity and we are electrifying our energy needs to try to reduce carbon emissions. Wind and solar are good sources but we do not have good guidelines for wind farms. I got a reply from

mistake that any Government made was to close it down in one go before we were assured that we had enough energy options, such as more wind turbines or whatever it is. We could be deriving more energy from our rivers. We are deprived of and stopped from … anything else, to stay in our country and to vote confidence in it by staying here. We need other options for energy. Until we have enough wind power and ways of storing the energy that is created by wind turbines, we need an alternative in the meantime. People

called Powering Ireland's Energy Future. It said Ireland had an opportunity to be a global leader in integrating variable renewable energies, particularly wind, into our energy system. It did not consider nuclear technology as feasible for inclusion in the Irish energy system in the timeframe

that. The Minister is talking about the huge amount of work on offshore wind but the reality is we generated more energy from wind 20 years ago. The climate crisis could not be more serious, and it is very obvious that it is not being taken seriously … action could be an enormous opportunity for Ireland. We could be leading the way. We could be developing offshore wind potential and become a net exporter of energy. We could be held up as the example of sustainable agriculture and food security. Instead, it is business as usual

majority of our energy. However, if other European countries had the potential that we have on our seabed, with offshore renewable energy, ORE, and with wind, they would be grabbing it and supplying it. They would be a producer of green hydrogen. They would use gravity storage. They … euro is being lost by solar farms and wind farms when there is too much sun and too much energy - the acceleration of our offshore wind, which I have spoken about, marine energy or green hydrogen, which we could speak about. Professor James Carton, my old engineering professor

have decoupled growth from emissions; — Ireland is at the forefront of transitioning to an electricity system dominated by variable renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar, and indeed renewable sources generated almost half of Ireland's electricity in February, March and April of this year; — significant investment … most impactful measures. For example, Ireland is at the forefront of transitioning to an electricity system dominated by variable renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar, and we have achieved record breaking levels of renewable electricity generation, reducing our reliance on imported fossil fuels. Most notably, emissions

near term with plans to move to net zero by 2050. We are fortunate here in Ireland to have extraordinary renewable energy resources. Our wind is among the strongest in Europe. Our solar sector is growing at speed, particularly in County Meath but, indeed, beyond … means we have added approximately 5 GW of new renewable energy generation capacity in just ten years, including doubling our wind capacity and establishing solar energy as a major pillar of our energy supply. In a few short years, solar has become a major component of our electricity

recognition that the next phase of Irish industrial development is going to be defined by transformation in solar, wind, public transport, energy and the digital transition. That is where the investment and jobs are going. That is why Ireland needs to position itself to lead or it will … country that is prosperous and secure, then we need to be the country that transforms. That means decisive investment in renewable energy - onshore and offshore wind and solar - and grid infrastructure. It means a public transport system worthy of a European capital and of every town in this

Government maintains that it is acutely aware of the pressure faced by people due to high energy costs and mentions the national energy affordability task force. It has been sitting for over a year but we are still going to have to wait until quarter 3 of this … Government has been failing on climate action. We have huge potential with the hopeful vision of the 540 GW of renewable energy in offshore wind. We can achieve energy independence but we need State investment. As the Minister of State knows, we have the highest electricity prices

renewable energy in this country. Offshore wind farms are an absolute obvious ask. It is shocking that we are not taking more energy from the wind and the waves that crash against the shores of this country. It is a crime we are not doing it. I welcome … right way to go about it. It should not be the case that someone can live in County Donegal and object to a wind farm off the coast of County Waterford when they have no locus standi and no basis to object to it. It is right that

Countries like Denmark and the UK have moved ahead while Ireland still has gigawatts of renewable energy waiting for connection. I have spoken to multiple people with solar farms or wind farms who have waited periods of 18 months or nearly two years for EirGrid … grid. It is not fair. According to EirGrid's transmission development plan of 2012, there is a further 13.3 GW of wind-generated energy and 9.5 GW of energy generated in other ways in the queue of applications. The CRU's recent announcement regarding data centres will probably

Time." In Ireland we have huge potential for a hopeful vision and we have a natural gift of 540 GW of renewable energy in offshore wind. We can achieve energy independence if we have the requisite motivation and we can return to the days when

considering these figures, it is not hard to see why. Yet, at the very same time, huge amounts of renewable energy are just being wasted. There are wind turbines all over this country that are being switched off because our electricity grid cannot manage the energy that they … using electric vehicles as quasi batteries to store the energy. We could indeed just put large-scale batteries on every wind farm to store that energy rather than wasting it. The technology is there but the Government, for some reason, is stubbornly refusing to actually consider

Absolutely, and we are all focused on bringing through more renewable energy. Offshore wind is vital. Our issue on this side of the House is that the renewable energy we are creating at the moment is being gobbled up by data centres. We also know the impact this

that we are trying to ensure that we have renewable energy in the country. If we are serious about renewable energy, we will have to see wind turbines not only on land … certainly offshore as well. I am conscious of the fact that very significant amounts of our energy is now fuelled by renewable energy, such as wind. I will speak to the Minister about the issues the Deputy has raised and hope he will come back to the Deputy

advancing critical infrastructure and public projects and listening to the voices of objectors. It concerns me hugely that just this week, a large wind farm company objected to, and had overruled, planning permission that had been granted to a private family for a private dwelling just outside Thurles … opposed planning and put the family through the wringer of An Coimisúin Pleanála had nothing to do with the principles of renewable energy or wind turbines and their rotational impact. The objection dealt with the county development plan and the entitlement the family would have, as local rural

many cases, the prices are approximately 50% higher and at least €200 per month and upwards. The majority of our renewable energy is now wind derived but solar renewable energy is fast on the catch-up. In the past five years, my home county of Meath has nearly

offshore renewable electricity support scheme, ORESS, 1 projects delivered and in construction. We will have another auction relating to onshore energy, both wind and solar, later this year that there is significant interest in. We are a leader in Europe in onshore renewables. The same will happen with … those east coast wind farms will on the grid in 2030 but they should be under construction but if it is in 2031 or 2032 that they are on that will still be a good thing. If 68% to 72% of our energy is being created by renewables

damaging and bad and that we have got to wean ourselves off them quickly. We are working very hard to capture renewable energy, whether wind or solar, and we are doing it in a plan-led and strategic way so that we can, from climate change and emissions

families. Ireland has vulnerabilities. We rely heavily on natural gas and an expensive grid. The drive to sustainable and clean solar and wind-generated energy takes time. Thankfully, 40% of our energy is already renewable and the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, has suggested we will

moving the focus in the debate towards solutions for people to reduce their energy bills. I welcome this motion. As I said before, we need to be moving towards giving better grants for solar in households, including in the very short term plug-in solar … looking at a wartime situation where we are putting our windfall assets into upgrading the grid and investing in offshore wind, tidal energy, solar and other capacity so that we are net exporters of energy through battery storage and green hydrogen. I am going to say this

workforce needed to sustain it. To prevent talent gaps and keep pace with rapid change, we need ambitious investment in renewable energy, offshore wind, grid connectivity and innovation capacity. The green transition presents enormous opportunities for skilled employment and regional development, if properly planned. Success in this evolving

serious about benefiting and being a leader in the EU, we need to benefit the Irish people with our offshore renewable energy, including wind

Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment if there are any further initiatives proposed by his Department to increase support for offshore wind infrastructure in coastal communities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [74749/25

Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the impact the suitability of Ireland’s waters will have on the development of offshore wind in Ireland (details supplied) and on reaching our climate targets; if he will outline the recommendations of a report

Deputy Richard O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment if he will acknowledge that the High Court has now ruled in multiple cases that wind turbine noise can constitute a nuisance, even where developments are compliant with planning conditions; and his plans to ensure

Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the position regarding further initiatives proposed by his Department to increase the support for offshore wind infrastructure in coastal communities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [59381/25

Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment whether a national policy framework is being developed to facilitate the lifetime extension of older wind farms and repowering where relevant. [57542/25

Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the position regarding any further initiatives proposed by his Department to increase the support for offshore wind infrastructure in coastal communities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [64945/26

Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the position regarding any further initiatives proposed by his Department to increase the support for offshore wind infrastructure in coastal communities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54396/26

Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the position regarding any further initiatives proposed by his Department to increase the support for offshore wind infrastructure in coastal communities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43425/26

Deputy Richard O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment to confirm that his attention has been drawn to the HSE’s 2017 Position Paper on Wind Turbines and Public Health being withdrawn; to outline when, if at all, his Department engaged with

Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the position regarding any further initiatives proposed by his Department to increase the support for offshore wind infrastructure in coastal communities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13792/26

Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the steps taken when there are no bids in auctions related to the construction of offshore wind infrastructure projects; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [74747/25

Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment to provide a detailed breakdown of the funding he has allocated to accelerate the delivery of offshore wind broken down by programme in each of the years from 2020 to date, in tabular form; to report

Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment if his Department has developed or holds any strategic mapping or spatial planning data identifying areas where wind farms are viable; if so, whether such maps are available to the public; and if he will make

Communications the total amount in subsidies that have been paid to support wind farm developments over each year for the past five years; if he plans to make changes to subsidies for the renewable energy sector in the foreseeable future; and if he will make a statement

Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment if he will publish an updated year-by-year trajectory to 2030 for renewable electricity generation, by onshore wind, offshore wind and solar PV capacity; the contingency measures he will introduce to stay on track

accelerate the delivery of offshore renewable energy in the wake of energy price hikes triggered by the ongoing conflict in the middle east; if the State will develop and retain ownership of any of the offshore wind sites; and if he will make a statement on the matter

Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment if he will publish an updated year-by-year trajectory to 2030 for renewable electricity generation, broken down by onshore wind, offshore wind and solar PV capacity; the contingency measures he will introduce to stay

Deputy Ciarán Ahern asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment for an update on the independent analysis being undertaken in relation to the repowering and lifetime extension of Ireland's existing onshore wind farms; the current status of this work; and when he expects the analysis

Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the community benefit fund or direct financial benefit that will be made available to residents living in proximity to the proposed Longford wind turbine. [44607/26

Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment his views on the proposal to make the construction of any additional data centres conditional on the coming on stream of additional wind generation capacity to power such centres; and if he will make a statement

Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment if his attention has been drawn to the €35 million penalty paid by a company (details supplied) after it pulled out of a wind farm project; and if any of this penalty will be invested into

Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 298, 301 and 302 of 10 February 2026, whether his Department has undertaken a delivery risk assessment of the 5 GW offshore wind target for 2030 in light of the anticipated

Noel McCarthy asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the proposed timeline for auctions for the delivery of the three other sites identified in the designated maritime area plan, which are not included in the Tonn Nua offshore wind auction; and if he will make

date in advancing offshore renewable energy projects off the Irish coast, including the number of projects that have received Maritime Area Consents; the status of grid connection arrangements for those projects; the expected commissioning timelines for the first operational offshore wind farms; and the measures being taken

Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment if he is aware of the Environmental Protection Agency's latest greenhouse gas emissions projections (details supplied); the reasons for this reduction in projected renewable electricity penetration; the extent to which delays to offshore wind projects, delays to the Celtic Interconnector