Ireland will not hit its target of halving carbon emissions by 2030, according to Minister for Climate Darragh O’Brien, who accepted the State faces the prospect of being fined billions by the EU as a consequence.During an interview on The Irish Times Inside Politics podcast, O’Brien acknowledged there was no hope of hitting the legally-binding target. “We’re not going to hit our target by the end of the decade,” he said. “We’re going to get as close to it as we can, but everything doesn’t stop in 2030.”The Environmental Protection Agency last week said that in a best-case scenario, Ireland could achieve a carbon emissions reduction of 25 per cent by 2030, well shy of the 50 per cent binding target.The Irish Fiscal Advisory Council has previously estimated the fines imposed by the European Commission for missing the targets could be between €8 billion and €26 billion. On the possibility of fines or “compliance payments” which could create an obligation for Ireland to purchase credits from countries that have achieved their targets, O’Brien said: “There’s certainly a risk that that could happen.”However, he said he would be negotiating with the commission with a view to avoiding any related costs for Ireland. He argued it would be better to invest in renewables than to spend billions on fines.Asked if he thought he would be able to “squirm out of it”, he said: “I don’t want to think about squirming out of it. I think it’s actually showing we’re literally investing on behalf of people.”The Minister said planning issues were largely to blame for delays to offshore wind projects – not expected to come on stream until after 2030.He said he would ask people who are thinking about objecting to wind-energy projects, by taking judicial review proceedings against them, to “look at the bigger picture”.Further delays to wind-energy projects because of judicial reviews “would be an awful scenario,” he said.O’Brien also said that a pilot vehicle scrappage scheme, announced on Wednesday, will probably be extended if it proves popular. The scheme will allow people to trade in old petrol and diesel cars for new electric vehicles. Extending the scheme would not be reliant on budget negotiations. It could be facilitated by his department through its existing funds, he added. “I think we’ll be able to decide it ourselves. I think what I’m trying to do is to deploy more grants with the funds that we have without looking for more money, and I’m not actually looking for more money. It’s trying to manage the resources that we have in a more targeted way,” he said.Darragh O'Brien on Ireland's missed climate targets, new help to buy EVs and Fianna Fáil's leadership Listen | 43:10O’Brien would not be drawn on the possibility of a Fianna Fáil leadership run when Micheál Martin steps down. He insisted there is “no vacancy” and that he hopes the Taoiseach will lead the party into the next general election. Few in the party expect Martin to lead the party into an election in 2029 and O’Brien did not deny having an interest in the position should a leadership election ensue next year.“I think my job is to work as hard as I can across the two departments I have (the Department of Transport and the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment) and also for the people in my own constituency,” he said. “That’s all I’m focused on. If things happen in the future, things happen in the future and you assess it at that stage . . . “but I don’t deal in hypotheticals.”