"Green" policies are destroying this country

So realistically if we decided that ESB were going to build and own the wind generation- what could the EU actually do about it?

I'm no expert but there is some subtle distinction between multi-player private markets and situations where there is basically one SOE monopoly. The citation of EU competition law in this case looks like the typical case of a national politician looking for an excuse.

The aim of current green policies (not only the Green party) is to stop populations consuming primary energy sources (oil, gas, coal, nuclear) and only permit access to a single secondary energy source (electricity). That secondary energy source can only be provided by intermittent generation from wind and solar with any surplus stored in batteries for later use or used to convert water by electrolysis into its constituent elements hydrogen and oxygen (marketed as green hydrogen). Burning wood, or biofuels is acceptable, these are blessed as "sustainable". Not satisfied with C02, the new satanic gases are methane (CH4) and Nitrogen gases (NxOx), it's not just 'Hippie crack', so far they ignore Sulphur Hexaflouride (SF6). The green fatwa on the new satanic gases are being used to support the narrative of banning meat consumption (cows belching and fertiliser use) and introducing traffic congestion charge (low emission zones) and the new fad, 15 minute neighbourhoods in urban areas.

Energy is life, our ability to access it is what sustains us. The decisions made 10 years ago have begun to take effect, oil and gas schemes take 7 to 10 years to bring online, and by the end of this decade Ireland is looking at serious gas shortage, with no buffer storage. European countries spent $1 trillion on energy to secure supplies for this Winter, and have to do it all again for next Winter. That spending has made it's way into the cost of production making provision of basics such as food & transport and given how far north we are in the Northern hemisphere, heating, much more expensive.

These green policies are endorsed by almost every political party in the country. It's not just Ireland, the same policies are evident in the UK and the across the European continental. There policies have no traction among countries in Asia, Africa or South America, these countries are building out their infrastructure using primary energy sources. In 2022-2023 more coal is consumed worldwide per annum that previously and Newcastle coal prices (benchmark) have hit records. Ireland currently uses coal for Moneypoint, they can store 3 months supply at the site. The plan was to shutdown this generating station in 2025, it will instead be converted to burn oil.

The government ministers and most people at the top in state agencies know full well that they cannot rely on wind and solar generation to keep the lights on. They must maintain two separate infrastructures and the cost will continue to be borne by the consumer, that is why the divergence between actions listed above and words about green future and green jobs. There is a lot of noise in the media about a future green utopia and an entire generation of twenty somethings are coming out of college armed with computer models (MaREI in particular) and buzzwords like sustainable. Meanwhile, the business world is telling us the reality and charging accordingly when they can.

You are now claiming there is a shortage of natural gas in Ireland over next three years? That is laughable.

Sure who knows?

70% of our NG needs are imported from a non EU country.

I will remedy your ignorance and allay your concern. There is no shortage of natural gas in Ireland. It is a fantasy to say that there is.

It's also government policy. So what do we do with that?

Are you cracked? How about read what I wrote, instead of telling me what I'm claiming. We are going to have eight gas turbines in the wilds of Offaly. They are going there purely because there is an existing grid connection and switchyard for the former peat plant. What there isn't is any gas connection, even though the high pressure pipeline from Corrib (and from Shannon LNG were it to be built) passes within less than 10km. These are open cycle peaker plants and therefore considerably less efficient than CCGT, and they will be burning distillate oil because there is no gas supply.

Ryan is the grinch of energy supply. He knows he can't get away without new generation because the CRU is telling him we have an electricity supply crisis. However, he wants to build just enough to stave off actual blackouts but without committing to any medium or longer term fossil fuel generation. So he's going to build these inefficient and uneconomic boondoggles. They'll only get to generate for 500 hours per year (a 5% capacity factor!) and it will require legislation to extend their lives beyond 2027. That's right, they will be junked after 2,000 hours of operation. (Except they won't, because I suspect our generating margins will be a disaster by then, thanks to Ryan. The likelihood is that these things will run much longer and much more often than Ryan desperately wants).

What we should be building is a load more baseload CCGT. And we absolutely need to diversify the gas supply to include both LNG and the two indigenous offshore gas prospects that still have exploration licenses. Ryan with his delusions of a windpowered utopia needs to be jettisoned before he does irreparable economic harm to the country.

It's not much better in the UK, Wind has been providing 3% to 5% of their generation, https://grid.iamkate.com/, https://gridwatch.co.uk/WIND

even Denmark is importing power - https://en.energinet.dk/, Germany is here https://www.agora-energiewende.de/en/service/recent-electricity-data/chart/power_generation/02.03.2023/05.03.2023/today/

Hardly groundbreaking journalism now is it. Martin would have sold his own mother for a tilt at the top job and not be the only party leader to not get the gig. To their shame both Martin and Leo have allowed the countries future to be hamstrung by a bunch of zealots.

competive electricity markets where French electricity can be sold on an equal footing with locally generated electricity in Spain, Italy and Germany (and one day, Ireland) are the bedrock of a French electricity policy. Without this right to compete France would no longer have a market for its excess nuclear power.

This will just kill off city centres, people won't bother coming into cities and more people will just work at home.

Keep in mind it is watermelons Greenies we are taking about here. Economics has never been one of their strong points. Back in 2012 when I lived in Bristol it was predicted the CPZ would wreck businesses. Low and behold when I was there last weekend some commercial units on Park Street are now derelict.

Are there any green initiatives that don't require fleecing us citizens?