EU to approve renewable energy subsidy

THE EU is expected to grant energy subsidy approval within the next month, potentially clearing the way for significant job creation and billions of euro worth of investment in Ireland’s renewable energy sector.

Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government Phil Hogan told the national conference of the Irish Wind Energy Association this week that an EU state aids decision on the renewable energy feed in tariff (Refit) programme should be made “in a few weeks”.

The Refit programme provides a guaranteed reference price for renewable energy and is essential to enabling development of renewable energy in Ireland. All EU nations with significant renewable sources operate some version of Refit.

The association has estimated that about 28,000 jobs can come about on the back of Ireland becoming a renowned wind energy export nation — but only if the country gets its support schemes and regulatory framework in place.

The issue of delays in awarding Ireland’s programme subsidies from Europe topped the agenda at its conference.

At the conference, Coillte’s chief executive, David Gunning, said the wind sector is a €10bn opportunity that Ireland is failing to grasp. In the run-up to the conference, association chief executive Kenneth Matthews warned that the sector is in “a very precarious position” and could lose billions of euro of investment, due to ongoing delays in the approval of subsidies.

Speaking after the conference, association chairman Stephen Wheeler welcomed the news from the minister.

“The news that we can expect the decision from Europe within weeks is what we’ve been waiting to hear for a long time.

“The minister also indicated that once the state aids clearance comes through from Europe, the matter can go straight to the Government, which clearly shares the frustration of all in the sector with delays in getting this decision,” he said.

Mr Gunning said Ireland has the potential to be an international leader in the development of wind energy, adding that it is not a question of whether investment is available, but rather how the right framework can be put in place to unlock it.

“We need to look at why we aren’t delivering on this,” he said. “To me, there are a number of factors and one of them, most definitely, is we don’t have a shared vision as to how we can achieve this.

“We’re lacking that big vision but we need to get it in place very quickly, as there is a €10bn offer on the table, including the potential to turn Ireland into an energy exporter, especially to the UK, that we need to capitalise on,” he added.