Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 14 May 2026
189. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment if he will publish the criteria used to award NORA storage contracts and the savings achieved by competitive bidding; and whether the Government has conducted any analysis of the potential reduction in NORA's storage expenditure that could be achieved if Ireland developed its own indigenous oil and gas resources instead of relying on foreign storage facilities. [35985/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe criteria used to award the National Oil Reserves Agency (NORA) storage contracts and the savings achieved by competitive bidding are an operational matter for NORA.
NORA has operational responsibility for the day-to-day management of the State’s Strategic Oil Reserve. Subject to value for money, NORA is charged with seeking to maximise the level of stock held on the island of Ireland and to that end, it is actively pursuing a number of possible opportunities for additional on-island storage.
In relation to the development of Ireland's own indigenous oil and gas resources, as outlined in the 2022 Policy Statement on Petroleum Exploration and Production, my Department no longer accepts new applications for petroleum authorisations for the exploration and extraction licences of natural gas or oil. This commitment was made effective immediately upon the previous Government taking office in June 2020, and the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021 placed this commitment on a statutory basis.
Holders of existing authorisations are not affected by these changes and may apply to progress their authorisations through the usual licensing stages.
