Sinn Féin today introduced the Cost of Renewables Taskforce Bill 2022 in the Dáil, aiming to reduce the high cost of producing renewable energy here and bring Ireland into line with other European countries.

Darren O’Rourke TD said:

“Today we introduced a bill in the Dáil that aims to reduce the cost of generating renewable energy here.

“The cost of producing electricity from wind and solar is too high and we want to bring this down, both to reduce household electricity bills and ensure we are competitive to export renewable energy to Europe.

“Our bill has a central aim; to quickly establish a cross-departmental taskforce to examine the high cost of producing renewable energy here and bring forward recommendations on ways to reduce this cost per megawatt-hour.”

Réada Cronin TD said:

“In our latest RESS auction, wind energy cleared at almost €98 per megawatt-hour. In other European countries, you will see prices in the €50s and, in Spain, even in the €20s per megawatt-hour.

“As we strive to reach 80% renewable energy generation by 2030, it is essential the cost of producing this green electricity comes down.

“Importantly, this bill also mandates the taskforce to recommend mechanisms to ensure any savings made on the costs of producing renewable energy are passed onto consumers.

“Our transition to a zero-carbon energy system must benefit the climate and also our citizens.”

Senator Lynn Boylan said:

“Delays in the planning system, the design of the auctions, commercial rates and grid connection costs are all pushing up the price of generating green energy in Ireland.

“The aim of this taskforce is to identify all of these contributory factors and bring forward recommendations, looking at international best practice, on how to reduce the cost of producing green energy per megawatt-hour.

“Cheaper wind power, solar energy and green hydrogen will be a winner for households, businesses and the environment.”