Energy Security: Statements
Seanad Éireann — 2026-04-29
============================================================

Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal East

I welcome the opportunity to discuss the issue of energy security, a topic which has been brought into really sharp focus by the current crisis and conflict in the Middle East. Energy is obviously central to all social and economic activity in Ireland and, while Ireland is significantly increasing our production of renewable energy, we continue to rely on oil and gas as part of our energy and transport systems.
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has greatly disrupted the global oil and gas markets. The International Energy Agency reports that around 20% of the world’s oil and liquified natural gas has been blocked since the end of February. The prolonged and ongoing nature of the war and longer-term damage to infrastructure and established trade routes further compound the scale of the impact and the challenge. The Government has been carefully monitoring the situation in the Middle East and we are taking proactive measures to ensure there is no disruption to our essential fuel imports. It is important to underline that, in the short term, the main impact of the conflict is on fuel prices for Irish consumers. Our security of supply of oil and gas is robust and our energy system is secure.
The only way to enhance Ireland’s energy resilience and insulate us from price and supply shocks is to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. That is why the Government is determined to build out more clean Irish renewable energy and to deepen interconnection with our European peers. Just last week, I signed a memorandum of understanding with the Spanish minster for energy, Sara Aagesen Muñoz, in respect of an Irish interconnector with Spain. We currently have over 8 GW of renewable electricity generation capacity connected to the network. This a remarkable achievement as it means we have added approximately 5 GW of new renewable electricity generation capacity in just ten years. That includes doubling our wind capacity and establishing solar energy as a major pillar of our energy supply. We are among world leaders for installed onshore wind capacity per capita and we are the European leader in the integration of variable renewable electricity onto the grid.
We get a greater share of our electricity from onshore wind farms than from anywhere else in Europe. In a few short years, solar has become a major component of our electricity supply. Solar is now the third highest supplier of indigenously generated electricity to the electricity grid, behind natural gas and wind. Solar is not only reducing electricity bills for households and businesses but also is easing pressure on the grid by lowering peak demand and supporting a more resilient energy system.
I want to do more to make solar affordable and accessible for householders and businesses. We are prioritising the development of more renewable energy, both onshore and offshore, including through reforming the planning system and making it easier to build clean energy projects. This will protect Irish energy consumers from the volatility of the high cost of imported fossil fuels. We are also accelerating the development of Ireland’s electricity grid to build resilience and to connect renewable energy with demand.
We have provided €3.5 billion in equity to Ireland’s onshore and offshore grid. In addition, increasing quantities of batteries, long-duration storage, interconnection capacity and demand-side response have also been procured in recent capacity market auctions, which will lessen Ireland’s dependence on fossil fuel imports in the coming years. Significant supports are available to homes and businesses to boost energy efficiency and to electrify. This will also reduce reliance on imported fossil fuels such as gas and home heating oil.
In the budget just gone, a record allocation of €640 million in Exchequer funding was secured, allowing us to target 73,000 home energy upgrades this year alone. This will build on over 250,000 households that have already benefited from home energy upgrades. A deep energy retrofit can save a household up to €1,100 per year in its bills. Our allocation for 2026 includes €340 million for the warmer homes scheme, which provides fully funded upgrades for those in energy poverty. To date, we have completed about 34,000 homes under the scheme, with grants of 100%.
The current oil situation in Ireland is stable, with no issue with supply expected in the next six weeks. In the case of jet fuel, alternative sourcing arrangements have been put in place. Jet fuel is sourced from the United States. My Department has been proactively managing the security of the supply situation in line with the oil emergency response plan. The plan and the underpinning legislation and structures have been substantially enhanced and updated following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, building on the strong foundations already in place. As a result, Ireland is better prepared to manage the current situation.
The response plan has been initiated and sets out a whole-of-government response covering the full duration of an oil emergency response, from initial hazard analysis through to response and recovery. The Government has legal powers and structures in place to manage the situation and to take further action should we need to do so. The National Oil Reserves Agency, NORA, provides a strategic buffer to protect Ireland in the event of a severe and prolonged escalation of this crisis. We currently hold about 85 days’ worth of supply in our strategic reserve. This reserve encompasses refined petroleum products, including petrol, diesel, jet fuel and kerosene.
On 11 March, Ministers in member countries of the International Energy Agency agreed to initiate an action to release strategic reserves of oil to address the supply issues, and Ireland contributed 1.6 million barrels to alleviate supply pressures.
On natural gas, the current assessment is that there is no risk to security of supply in Ireland. The assessment is based on engagement with the International Energy Agency, the European Commission, Britain’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, as well as with Gas Networks Ireland. Ireland imports about 80% of its natural gas from Britain via two subsea interconnectors, with the remaining gas being produced indigenously at the Corrib field. Britain has a diverse supply of natural gas and is not dependent on gas from the Middle East. Prior to the conflict, only 1% of UK gas supply was sourced from Qatar. Imports have been increasing from the United States and other regions, so there is currently limited risk to imports from Britain.
It is not currently anticipated that the Iran conflict will have a material impact on Ireland’s security of electricity supply, and my Department has ongoing contact with EirGrid and the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, CRU, on any potential risk to security of supply through a number of channels and working groups. I engage with them personally. While the Government is committed to ambitious decarbonisation targets, the variable nature of some renewable technologies currently requires that dispatchable, typically fossil fuel generation remains crucial for ensuring security of supply.
In the longer term, the delivery of a strategic gas emergency reserve will play a vital role in ensuring Ireland’s energy security. The strategic gas emergency reserve will protect Ireland’s energy systems should any disruption occur to Ireland’s gas infrastructure. It is not intended for commercial use. It will be State-owned, State-managed, State-led and State-operated and will be divested when no longer required to secure Ireland’s energy systems.
Although Ireland’s energy security situation is currently stable, it goes without saying that households and businesses are being exposed to higher fuel prices. We recognise this as a Government and we understand the real financial pressures that many across the country are facing because of the developments in the Middle East. As a small open economy with historical reliance on fossil fuels, Ireland is particularly vulnerable to such global energy price shocks. The major disruption to global energy supply because of the conflict in the Middle East has been reflected in extremely volatile commodity prices over the past number of weeks. For that reason, in recent days we introduced an additional package of measures on fuel costs and supports for the transport, farming and fisheries sectors. The practical measures introduced by the Government on 12 April include reductions in excise on diesel and petrol by a further 10 cent, to 32 cent and 27 cent, respectively; a reduction in excise on marked gas oil, or green diesel, by a further 2.4 cent to 7.4 cent; a deferral of the planned increase in the carbon tax; and a reduction in excise, including the NORA levy reduction, which took effect from midnight on 1 April and will run to the end of July this year.
The Government has announced a new road transport support scheme, as well as supports for coach operators providing Local Link services. The combined cost is €40 million per month for three months, backdated to 1 March. That scheme opens today, and it and the agrifood scheme will be open for applications in the next two weeks. The €100 million fuel subsidy support scheme will assist farmers, agricultural contractors and fishers. It was announced by my colleague Deputy Heydon, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
The new package of supports is in addition to earlier measures announced in March, including the expansion of the diesel rebate scheme, backdated to January, and an extension of the fuel allowance by a further four weeks. Under the fuel allowance scheme, about one quarter of households in the country, or 470,000, receive direct payments.
No doubt, this is a very volatile situation. We have to manage it in a sustainable way on behalf of our people. I have every confidence that we will be able to do that. I appreciate the support of Government Senators and, indeed, Opposition Senators for some of the measures we have taken. However, we need to retain the ability to respond further should this situation deteriorate. We all hope for a de-escalation of the current conflict in the Middle East.

---

Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted.

Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-04-29/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:52+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-04-29