Two bilateral agreements signed yesterday in Paris at the International Energy Agency (IEA) biannual Ministerial Meeting mark the strengthening of ties and growing cooperation between Ireland and France in the field of energy efficiency, renewable energy and energy security.
This follows the successful development of the Ireland France roadmap including the establishment of the Ireland France Sustainable Energy Forum which was agreed by French Prime Minister Valls and An Taoiseach in May 2015. The roadmap identifies areas for collaboration in the energy sectors role in the transition to a low carbon future.
In the context of the Ireland France roadmap the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) and the French Agency for Environment and Energy Management (ADEME) signed an interagency agreement providing for cooperation in the areas of renewable energy, and marine energy in particular, smart grids and energy efficiency.
Minister for Energy Alex White and his French counterpart Ségolène Royal signed a bilateral agreement on the reciprocal holding of emergency stocks of crude oil and petroleum products. The new agreement with France gives additional flexibility to Ireland’s National Oil Reserves Agency (NORA), which manages these stocks.