Key stages of the development
• The original plan of development for the Corrib gas project, along with foreshore licence and compulsory acquisition orders for the onshore pipeline route, was granted by former minister for the marine, Frank Fahey, in April and May 2002.
• Planning permission for the gas refinery was secured from An Bord Pleanála in October 2004.
• An integrated pollution prevention control (IPPC) licence for the refinery was granted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in November 2007.
• A modified onshore pipeline route has still to be identified and and will be subject to planning approval for the first time.
• Approval for the pipeline under Foreshore Act and Gas Act is also required from Minister for Energy, Éamon Ryan.
• Separate approvals are needed under the Habitats Directive from Minister for the Environment, John Gormley.
• Unauthorised work on a special area of conservation by Shell consultants last month is still being assessed by Mr Gormley's office.
• The EU Parliament's Petitions Committee is considering a complaint lodged by Dr Mark Garavan, former Shell to Sea spokesman, in relation to EU directive breaches.