Minister commences Strategic Gas Reserve Act 2026 with new order

The Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment has made the Development (Strategic Gas Reserve) Act 2026 (Commencement) Order 2026, activating the State’s new statutory framework for a strategic gas reserve. The order, S.I. No. 512 of 2026, was made in exercise of the powers conferred by section 1(2) of the Development (Strategic Gas Reserve) Act 2026 (No. 36 of 2026) and is published in Iris Oifigiúil of 9 October 2026.

The commencement order is the instrument that brings the Act’s provisions into operation. The Act itself was signed by the President on 23 July 2026 and accordingly became law, according to the notice of enacted legislation carried in Iris Oifigiúil of 28 July 2026, where it is listed as Act No. 36 of 2026.

That same notice recorded the signature of the Israeli Settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (Prohibition of Importation of Goods) Act 2026 (No. 35 of 2026) and a series of designation orders made by the Government under the Critical Infrastructure Act 2026, placing the gas reserve measure within a wider legislative programme touching infrastructure and national security.

The instrument

The published text is short and formal, in the manner of commencement instruments: it records that the Minister acted under section 1(2) of the Act and that he “has made the Order entitled above”. The text as published states no separate commencement date.

• S.I. No. 512 of 2026 — Development (Strategic Gas Reserve) Act 2026 (Commencement) Order 2026.
• Made by the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment under section 1(2) of the parent Act.
• Parent Act: Development (Strategic Gas Reserve) Act 2026 (No. 36 of 2026).
• Published in Iris Oifigiúil, 9 October 2026; copies available from Government Publications, Mountshannon Road, Kilmainham, Dublin 8, price €1.50.

Energy measures in the same gazette

The commencement sits alongside other energy measures published in Iris Oifigiúil this year. The levy on relevant disposals of petroleum products under the National Oil Reserves Agency Act 2007 was reduced to €0.001 per litre for the period 1 August to 31 August 2026 under S.I. No. 374 of 2026, and again for 1 September to 31 October 2026 under S.I. No. 446 of 2026, both made by the same Minister under section 37(1B) of that Act.

Separately, the Maritime Area Regulatory Authority made the Maritime Area Planning Act 2021 (Fit and Proper Person – Gas Networks Ireland) Order 2026 (S.I. No. 375 of 2026) under section 90(1) of the Maritime Area Planning Act 2021, after consultation with the Minister of State at the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment.

Who decides

The portfolio is held by Darragh O’Brien TD, named as Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment in the oil reserves levy orders published in Iris Oifigiúil on 31 July and 1 September 2026. The commencement order itself names only the office, not the officeholder.

The commencement order means the framework created by the Oireachtas in July is no longer dormant: the reserve regime is switched on and the Minister holds the powers the Act confers. For households and industry dependent on gas supply, the measure adds a statutory layer to the State’s energy security architecture, alongside the oil reserves levy regime and the designation of critical infrastructure.

Source: Iris Oifigiúil, No. 81, 9 October 2026, section I (official reference: S.I. No. 512 of 2026).