merrion street

The Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Richard Bruton T.D. today (Monday, 15^th April 2019) welcomed the launch of the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) 2019 Review of Ireland’s Energy Policies.

The review acknowledges the significant change and progress made in recent years, noting for example that Ireland now has the third highest share of wind generated electricity among all 30 IEA member countries. The review recommends however, that concrete plans and pathways must be developed in respect of carbon emissions reductions noting that Ireland’s energy system is still heavily reliant on fossil fuels.

Minister Bruton today welcomed the review and its recommendations stating:

The International Energy Agency’s review confirms that while recovery has seen some improvement in take up of renewables and in energy efficiency, Ireland has not broken the link between economic growth and prosperity and greenhouse gases. It highlights the major changes Ireland needs to make in how we heat our buildings, on how we move around and how we power our grid.

The all of government plan will provide the clear targets and the policy roadmap which we need. However, the first challenge is to secure widespread buy-in across our entire community on the vital importance of the journey which we need to go on. This can only be achieved by all sections of our community working together.

Paul Simons, IEA Deputy Executive Director, presented the report to Ireland, stating:

Ireland has become a world leader on system integration of renewables thanks in large part to strong policy and commitment to innovation. Building on this success, we advise the government to urgently implement additional climate measures and monitor their  progress to get the country back on track for long-term targets.