Minister defends decision not to grant prospecting licences

Minister for Energy Eamon Ryan said his decision not to grant prospecting licences to two companies which would have allowed them to search for uranium in Donegal was taken after careful consideration.

"The most likely end use of any uranium extracted here would be for nuclear electricity generation. It would not be consistent, therefore, to permit the extraction of uranium for use in nuclear reactors in other countries, while Ireland is opposed to the use of electricity generated by nuclear power in Ireland."

Mr Ryan said that in granting a licence to search for any mineral, the understanding was that if a commercial discovery is identified, the licence holder would be able to proceed with an application to mine the deposit.

"It follows then, that it would not be right to allow an exploration company to carry on searching for a mineral when it is our clear policy not to allow extraction of that mineral. I do not see that this decision conflicts with the idea of a debate on nuclear energy which I hope can take place within the Oireachtas committee system. The debate should allow deputies or outside parties argue the case for an alternative policy position to the existing statutory ban on electricity generated by nuclear power in Ireland."