Minister and Green Party leader Eamon Ryan and Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary are to meet today with both parties trading public statements in the run-up to the meeting, the first since Minister Ryan took over the transport portfolio four years ago.
Ryanair have called on Green Transport Minister, Eamon Ryan, to explain why he won’t intervene in the planning process to scrap the 32m Dublin Airport cap when he had no problem intervening in the planning for the Shannon LNG facility in 2022.
Michael O”Leary said he will be asking Minister Ryan to explain why he won’t intervene in the Dublin traffic cap planning process, why he is failing to deliver his National Aviation Policy which is to grow traffic, tourism, and jobs, and why he is squandering Ireland’s ETS revenues on school buses (a Dept of Education budget) rather than investing in greening Irish aviation.
Eamon Ryan said he would use the meeting to “set the record straight on a couple of things that he may be misguided. I’m interested in the details of policy here discussing with Ryanair, I don’t think there’ll be any problem on a personal level. I’m looking to discuss with him how we decarbonise aviation. Like we can’t have certain sectors and Dubliners all during our bit and one sector not being part of it.”
“As Transport and as Climate and Energy Minister, what I’m looking to do and to discuss with Michael O’Leary and his team is: ‘What do we do next? What do we do further? How do we make aviation sustainable in this big change we need to make? The independence and the strength of our planning system is really important and that’s one of the things I’ve been looking to talk to Michael about.”
Ryanair’s Michael O’Leary said: “Transport Minister Eamon Ryan must take urgent action to scrap the Dublin Airport traffic cap, especially when Dublin has recently opened a 2nd runway taking capacity to 60m but aviation and jobs growth is being blocked by an artificial 32m traffic cap. We look forward to explaining Ryanair’s plan to grow Irish traffic by 50pc over the next six years to 2030; our plan to reach net zero by 2050; and asking Minister Ryan when he plans to take action to scrap Dublin’s absurd traffic cap by intervening as he did in the Shannon LNG planning process in 2022; and when he will start using Irish passenger ETS revenues of over €200m p.a. to incentivise Ireland’s supply of SAF’s rather than subsidising the Dept of Education school bus budget. We look forward to hearing Minister Ryan’s plans to deliver growth under his National Aviation Policy, when sadly for 4 years he doesn’t appear to have any growth plans.”
Eamon Ryan’s previous intervention in planning process
Mr O’Leary circulated a copy of a report from the Business Post of January 12 2022 describing how Eamon Ryan intervened directly in the planning process for Shannon LNG:
Eamon Ryan has intervened directly in the planning application of Shannon
LNG. telling An Bord Pleanála that it should not be permitted “under any circumstances.”
The Business Post previously reported that New Fortress Energy: the US energy firm, was preparing to lodge a new planning application for a €650m Shannon LNG liquified natural gas import terminal, along with a 600 megawatt gas power plant. on the Shannon estuary in Ballylongford, County Kerry.
That application was lodged directly with An Bord Pleanála in September as a strategic infrastructure development, and a decision on the application is expected In March of this year.
Shannon LNG has been in the pre-development phase in Ireland for many years, with substantial opposition emerging to the project on environmental grounds, as some of the gas that Yes fortress Energy would supply to the terminal may come from fracking in the US. Fracking is a form of fossil fuel extraction which involves injecting high-pressure water and chemicals deep into the earth to release hydrocarbons from shale rock.
New correspondence from the end of October 2021 shows the Minister for Environment. Climate and Communications wrote directly to An Bord Pleanála stating that as a prescribed body considered relevant to this planning application” he wished to “set out clearly my views.”
Ryan went on to draw An Bord Pleanála’s attention to the programme for government, which he reminded them, has stated that we do not believe that it makes sense to develop LNG gas import terminals importing fracked gas.
He then further referred planning officials to the Government policy on the importation of fracked gas, published in May 2021, which he said clearly showed government opposition to the building of LNG terminals, until a full energy security review could be completed.
*The government has approved that pending the outcome of the review of the security of energy supply of Ireland’s electricity and natural gas systems, it would not be appropriate for the development of any LNG terminals to be permitted… Ryan said, quoting from the May policy statement.
Ryan said that while he accepted the need for additional electricity generation capacity: the inclusion of a power plant in this project did not change the fact that it was contrary to government policy.
“In conclusion. I wish to make it very clear that I believe that they permitting of this project would be in direct contravention to government policy and should not, under any circumstances, be permitted.”
