Renewable Energy Magazine 2021 by bmf business services

Renewable energy magazine

Renewables, recycling, and restoration

European Commission Director Catharina SikowMagny on ambitions for decarbonisation

Energy Minister Eamon Ryan TD discusses renewable energy opportunities

Wind

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Solar

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Hydrogen

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Storage

Northern Director of Energy Strategy Thomas Byrne outlines strategy development

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Carbon budgets

Issue 11 • 2021-2022

Bord na Móna’s JP McGrath

IRELAND’S RENEWABLE ENERGY MAGAZINE

Contents

Foreword

Energy Minister Eamon Ryan TD

MaREI Director Brian Ó Gallachóir on

discusses raised ambitions

Heating and cooling in Ireland

Cover story: Bord na Móna’s

Director of Energy Strategy for the

JP McGrath on renewables, recycling, and restoration The EU Commission’s Catharina Sikow-Magny discusses a

Round table discussion:

the role of carbon budgets

North Thomas Byrne discusses policy options

decarbonised economy

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directory

Advertising/Commercial Sam Tobin sam.tobin@energyireland.ie Publishers eolas magazine www.eolasmagazine.ie info@eolasmagazine.ie @eolasmagazine

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The major annual conference for the Irish renewable energy sector The 2022 Irish Renewable Energy Summit will once again bring together all the key stakeholders from across the energy sector to discuss how the contribution from renewable energy can be maximised and implemented most effectively. The conference brings together all the key players across the renewable energy sector and the wider energy sector.

Sponsorship opportunities are available for 2022 Irish Renewable Energy Summit contact info@energyireland.ie for further information.

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Organised by

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A measure of ambition… Speaking recently at Energy Ireland 2021, the Executive Vice President for the European Green Deal, Frans Timmermans, said that the journey to climate neutrality across the EU by 2050 must start immediately, asserting that any delay would provoke more radical measures in the future and make action more difficult for society to accept. Timmermans was speaking in the context of the EU setting out its most ambitious target yet of greenhouse gas emissions reduction by at least 55 per cent by 2030, but more important than the ambitious target, the Fit for 55 package set out a range of legislative proposals and policy initiatives. There is a recognition that Ireland has been a leader in establishing its energy transition ambition; ambition which is expected to be enhanced further in the forthcoming Climate Action Plan. But there is also a recognition that, as Timmermans emphasises, action must begin immediately. Brian Ó Gallachóir, Director of MaREI, succinctly summarised this, highlighting the three core elements of successful policy: Targets, plan, and measures. Ireland has set ambitious targets for the energy transition, those targets are supported by plans, for example, 70 per cent renewable electricity by 2030, one million EVs, 500,000 retrofits and over 600,000 heat pumps. However, there is a noticeable gap linking targets to measures. Some measures have been initiated, for instance both the carbon tax and the launch of RESS-1, but gaps exist in delivering measures to address areas such as renewable heat and flexibility of the electricity system. The ambition of climate neutrality by 2050 will require a wholesale change of the energy system, driven by dramatic changes to each component of that system. It is imperative that measures are put in place now to drive step changes within those sectors, if 2030 and 2050 ambitions are to be realised. This year’s Renewable Energy Magazine examines much of the progress which has already been made and highlights areas where action is required. A step up of ambitions is explored with Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications Eamon Ryan TD on his plans for raised ambitions. The cover story with Bord na Móna outlines a prime example of an organisation that has embraced the need for transition, evolving into a leading climate solutions company. SSE’s roundtable discussion engages stakeholders on the injection of urgency into Ireland’s response to the climate crisis. We also hear from a range of experts on the challenges which remain.

David Whelan

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Ireland’s transition to a low carbon energy future Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications, Eamon Ryan TD, discusses the enormity of Ireland’s renewable energy challenge and the opportunities that lie in raising ambitions. Setting out the context for the huge challenge facing Ireland in its decarbonisation journey, Minister Ryan says that while the existing Climate Action Plan outlined an ambitious reduction of 16 million tonnes of CO2, the reality is that the country must seek to halve its emissions in the next decade. “That has never been done in any country, but it is what we must do, on the understanding that it is going to be good for our economy,” he states, adding that doing so will allow the country to move towards more secure energy, food and transport systems. 4

“It is correct that we be really ambitious, not just because the science requires it but because it is the way the world is going and because we know there are opportunities in our ability to be good at this.” Ryan says that the way Ireland will meet fresh ambitions will be underpinned by the structures, of the Climate Change Advisory Council, and climate law, with the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021 now signed into law. The law strengthens the existing advisory council, giving it a longer-term perspective to propose a series of three

five-year carbon budgets to the minister, which will in turn inform the next Climate Action Plan. The Climate Action Plan is expected to be published before the end of 2021 and Ryan explains that Government’s focus has been to ensure that ambitions continue to be raised. “I plan to use the climate action plan to integrate climate and energy policies and plans in Ireland. I want to see the annual update to the climate plan to include the actions from all energy sectors. It will integrate our national retrofit plan. It will include policies and measures to support the development

of green hydrogen and district heating. I want to focus my time, the Department’s capacity and our officials on implementation of policies,” he says.

Electricity

“As Minister for Energy a decade ago, I remember being told that the 40 per cent target was beyond possible and that physics wouldn’t allow it. Recently, we’ve seen levels of wind penetration beyond even what we expected a few years ago,” he states. “We keep learning how to balance variable supply and demand and the fact is that we are very good at it. Industry is very capable; our grid companies are very capable and we’re starting to utilise flexibilities in the form of demand side management and other capabilities. We are coming from a base of having shown real leadership and real skill. “So, our target is we go for 70 per cent and then we go beyond, confident that we have done it before, and we will do it again now.” However, the Minister was speaking shortly after the issuing of a number of amber warnings by the System Electricity Market Operator (SEMO) in September 2021 when the gap between demand and available supply was “smaller than optimum”. The Minister says that ensuring continued security of energy supply is “a national priority”. “I am acutely aware of the need to urgently replace the older, more polluting fossil generation in Ireland and cater for additional demand. Simple maths will point this to being in excess of 2GW of conventional plant, and much of this will be needed as soon as can be delivered,” he explains. “This conventional generation will spend much of its time in reserve for when needed, therefore the proportion of electricity generated by natural gas is expected to decrease from the current level of 50 per cent to much less than 30 per cent by 2030. “We will also need additional capacity in both demand response and storage. I also know that accelerating our deployment of renewables and storage

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The Minister is quick to acknowledge successful progress in relation to renewable electricity, with Ireland comfortably reaching its 2020 target of 40 per cent renewable electricity on the system and believes that this success should serve as an exemplar of how Ireland should strive to push the boundaries of what is possible in relation to renewable electricity.

“We keep learning how to balance variable supply and demand and the fact is that we are very good at it.” roll out will decrease the frequency and severity of supply shortages. My department and EirGrid are working closely with the CRU in this regard and there are a range of actions underway which will have to secure the capacity of reliable, flexible gas plant, that I hope will transition to renewable gas next decade.” The Minister explains that data centres will also need to play their part in security of supply, demand response and storage, but also in the short term by mitigating their impacts on the grid where they wish to connect. “The new Climate Action Plan, which I will soon bring to Government, will set out new targets to increase our renewable electricity supply, to deliver a highly flexible demand and ensure that we protect the security of electricity supply, upon which our economy and wellbeing depend,” he says. Outlining how the Government aims to support new ambition in renewable electricity, the Minister points to the move away from the previous REFIT feed-in tariff support to an auction system in the form of the first RESS-1 scheme. A timeline of late 2021/early 2022 has been outlined for a further RESS auction, with the Minister expecting the qualification window to open in 2021. Pointing to the seven community-based projects included in the first auction, Ryan says that he expects and hopes that that number will increase significantly in further auctions,

recognising the importance of community involvement to maintain public and community support for the scale of change needed for delivery. “I will also be looking to get community funding in, as well as community supports out,” he adds. “We are currently looking at various mechanisms by which we might get community capital in to help developers, to de-risk projects and to get low-cost capital financing into the system. It has been useful to look at international examples of where countries have been successful in bringing public capital in to support development.” Ryan states that a further auction will also likely have a focus on those projects that will help ease rising levels of curtailment and constraint. “Grid is key to transformation and anything we can do, including battery storage and hybrid projects, to help overcome that grid constraint is going to offer real opportunities.” The Minister stresses that the auction system should not hinder the development of corporate purchase ambitions and highlights the recent closure of a consultation on the policy options for meeting Ireland’s target of 15 per cent of demand to be met by renewable energy sources under CPPAs. Ryan attests that in order for Ireland to reach its raised ambition, it will “require every tool in the box”. To this end, he points to the development of a Micro-

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“Grid is key to transformation and anything we can do, including battery storage and hybrid projects, to help overcome that grid constraint is going to offer real opportunities.” generation Support Scheme set to provide enhanced balancing capability and a more stable system.

says: “We are going to have to go further than even our existing most ambitious plans.”

“We are late in implementing the clean energy package for microgeneration. We are absolutely committed to delivering this as soon as possible and I have appointed the CRU to implement a new clean export guarantee,” he states

However, he warns: “We must not make false promises and we must not rush it. We need to get the environmental planning right and we need to ensure that our learnings over the last decade are replicated in the development of offshore to attract international investment and to build up local expertise.”

However, the Minister outlines his intention to offer support beyond microgeneration up to 50KW for a more distributed system and potentially go up to 1MW, particularly for business, rooftop solar and farming. “We’re going to need every source of renewable power supply and we will be going further to look at a mechanism of how we roll that out and deliver it,” he explains.

Offshore Turning to offshore wind at scale, the Minister describes the potential as a “game changer”. The Government’s current target is for 5GW from offshore by 2030 and at least 30GW by 2050. The Minister explains that the rules for the first offshore auction will be set out in autumn, however, this must be preceded by the introduction of the Maritime Area Planning (MAP) Bill. Ryan says that the first auction will target the seven project areas where development has already occurred in the past 10 years and outlines his hope that the first auction will facilitate around 2.5GW with further auctions enabling the establishment of a pipeline of projects. Ryan has called for bigger thinking in relation to offshore, believing that Ireland should not wait until 2030 to start deploying technology beyond fixed pylon. Suggesting a focus on floating offshore in the Celtic Sea, the Minister 6

Ryan stresses that skills need to be built up not just in relation to deployment, maintenance, and supply but also in the use of power when it comes ashore. “We need to look at this as an industrial project for the use of power, not just the gathering of it,” he says. To this end, the Minister highlights plans to bring officials from the Department’s petroleum affairs division into the renewables division to help ensure systemised long-term planning for 35GW of development. The Minister is quick to point out that Ireland’s offshore development is part of a wider European project, stating his “fervent belief” that offshore wind development at scale will only work as part of international cooperation. Pointing to a North Sea rollout of potentially 250-400GW of offshore wind power, Ryan believes that the scale of that development will help bring down the cost of Ireland’s 35GW developments and provide learning. “The sharing of the power through an interconnected grid system will help make the economics work and the engineering of this work,” he adds. “That involves the UK, whatever Brexit brings, because it is there as a neighbouring island, and we will connect more.”

Grid Ryan stresses that for both onshore and offshore development, development of the grid is key, and management of distribution and transmission will be a major challenge in the years ahead. Flagging the planned introduction of 600,000 domestic heat pumps over the next decade as an example of the scale of the solutions that will need to be sought for the grid, he adds: “We are going to do it because it is a better energy system. The sophisticated switching on and off at both industrial and domestic scale is the centre of the new energy revolution that is taking hold across the world. “This is where the energy future is, and it is where energy systems are going. We have to be and are going to be good at balancing, switching on and off smart energy systems and managing the distribution system to make it work.”

Heat Turning to the decarbonisation of heat, Ryan says that the sector is often under looked and must now be taken seriously following Ireland’s failure to meet its heat targets. The Minister says that as well as the electrification of heat in domestic homes, the Government are also targeting the industrial sector through the Support Scheme for Renewable Heat (SSRH). The Minister acknowledges the delay in delivering the scheme, meaning that supports to business didn’t arrive on time to meet the country’s ambitions but says that he hopes this can be “turned around”. One of the changes he hopes will help is the enhanced capability of SEAI, including approval of 50 new positions within the organisation and a further 50 in the Department, which he describes as a “signal of real intent” by the Government. Additionally, he points to a recognition by the Minister for Higher Education, Simon Harris TD, of a need for around 30,000 new workers in the area of retrofitting for the roll out of heat pumps and other sophisticated heat systems. Concluding, the Minister says the underpinning raised ambitions must be political support, with a recognition that a stop-start approach will not work or provide the certainty needed for a decarbonised economy and a just transition.

Decisive moment for offshore wind energy Surveys As well as MACs, some projects need survey licences. There is no way for projects to obtain a licence for marine surveys outside the 12 nautical mile limit and, unless the Bill is changed, there won’t be, until MARA is established.

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This prevents floating wind projects from moving forward. If they cannot carry out surveys to prepare for planning, it kills their chances of delivering by 2030. Amending the Bill to enable projects to apply for licences now would help to kickstart a new floating wind energy industry.

Planning permission

The first of 84 turbines, alongside the Pacific Orca installation vessel, at the 588MW Beatrice Offshore Windfarm developed by SSE and partners off the coast of Scotland.

The Maritime Area Planning Bill is the single most important piece of legislation for the Oireachtas right now, writes Wind Energy Ireland CEO Noel Cunniffe. It will determine whether the target of 5GW of offshore wind by 2030 is truly achievable. Its publication, delayed by the pandemic, is almost two years behind schedule so there is no time to lose. It must be the key priority for the Oireachtas. Like every Bill it must be thoroughly scrutinised by legislators, but it must remain at the top of their agenda until enacted. Every month of delay is another month relying on polluting fossil fuels instead of wind energy. As well as getting the Bill through quickly, there are four key areas where it must be improved.

Flexibility Given the rapidly evolving technology and lengthy delivery timelines associated with offshore wind energy there is a significant need for design and consent flexibility. The EU Commission says that providing “flexibility during the design and preplanning phase of offshore wind energy

projects and…a degree of freedom to optimise wind turbine parameters prior to construction…is a proven and acceptable approach”. But this approach is missing from the Bill, preventing developers from using the most up-to-date technology which would allow them to cut electricity prices.

Delivering for 2030 We cannot reach the 5GW target with only the ‘Relevant Projects’ but the Bill requires other projects to wait until the new Maritime Area Regulatory Authority (MARA) is established before they can apply for a Maritime Area Consent (MAC). But MARA will only be ready, at best, 12 to 18 months after the Bill is enacted. We simply cannot connect 5GW by 2030 if projects must wait another two years for a MAC.

Obtaining a MAC does not guarantee planning permission and a project might initially be turned down by An Bord Pleanála. As the Bill is currently drafted the project would automatically lose its MAC, sending the process back to the beginning at an enormous cost in time. And time, as the IPCC recently reminded us, is something we do not have. If a project is turned down for planning, but can fix the problem and put in a new application, why stop them? Long-stop dates can be used to prevent projects hoarding marine area. This is much fairer and makes the 2030 target more achievable. And hitting that target is imperative. Ireland faces growing security of supply challenges and is increasingly exposed to climate change. We must develop offshore wind farms as quickly as possible. To do this we must have a fair and transparent planning system and that is why the Maritime Area Planning Bill must be passed before the end of the year. Noel Cunniffe is CEO of Wind Energy Ireland.

T: + 353 45 899 341 E: office@windenergyireland.com W: www.windenergyireland.com

The Bill must give the Minister the power to grant MACs to projects that can be connected to the grid by the end of the decade.

cover story

Renewables, recycling, and restoration In support of Ireland’s ambition of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050, Bord na Móna has redefined its role, transforming into a leading climate solutions company. Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Chief Operating Officer (COO) JP McGrath discusses the development and delivery of his company’s climate solutions. 8

Historically, peat extraction contributed to 90 per cent of Bord na Móna’s business and the bulk of its jobs. However, in January 2021, the company announced the permanent cessation of all peat harvesting on its lands and the migration of its employees into new roles. Having embarked on a journey of developing and implementing its Brown to Green transformation strategy in 2018, Bord na Móna is now entirely focused on renewable energy generation, recycling and developing additional low carbon enterprises. “It was an imperative that was driven by survival and making the business relevant into the future,” McGrath begins, adding: “Bord na Móna is now better placed than any business in the country in terms of being able to execute this strategy because of our land holding and established capability in this space. “We are very confident that we have delivered a firm pathway into the future through our 10-year plan which incorporates a €1.6 billion investment in renewables.”

Climate neutrality Today, Bord na Móna’s vision is about facilitating Ireland’s drive to climate neutrality no later than 2050. This vision contains three components: firstly, helping to decarbonise the energy supply; secondly, driving the recycling agenda; and thirdly, rehabilitating peatlands. Consequently, its mission is to take a leadership position in developing and delivering clean energy, carbon storage and resource recovery solutions for a greener future. This mission comprises four key pillars: 1. providing Ireland with sustainable energy from renewable sources at scale;

“We want to be a source of high-quality jobs and a business that the people of the Midlands, and the wider country, can be proud of.” 2. rehabilitating Irish peatlands; 3. delivering exemplar waste and resource recovery solutions; and 4. helping Ireland reimagine how it engages with climate action.

Renewable energy Climate Action Plan 2019 committed Ireland to the generation of 70 per cent of electricity from renewable sources by 2030. In support of this ambition, Bord na Móna has pledged to expand Ireland’s renewable energy infrastructure. Its pipeline of renewable energy projects spans a broad spectrum including onshore wind, onshore solar, battery technology, biogas and is entering the embryonic space of green hydrogen production. This pipeline, McGrath suggests, means that the company is on track to supply renewable energy to one-third of Irish homes by 2030, particularly via the installation of wind turbines on cutaway bogs. “We are also attempting to understand whether we can and should play a role in the offshore wind space,” he adds. “We have the capability and experience in terms of planning and developing major projects, alongside a thorough understanding of the planning regime in

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Employing approximately 1,500 people and managing a land holding totalling over 80,000 hectares, Bord na Móna has moved away from its traditional role as a peat harvesting business, instead implementing a climate-focused business plan. It aims to cultivate conditions for the storage of carbon and protection of biodiversity, as well as contribute to Ireland’s sustainable energy security.

Ireland and good intragovernmental relationships. As such, through potential partnerships, Bord na Móna may be able to play a significant role in the offshore space.” Bord na Móna is working alongside organisations both nationally and internationally to embrace and implement best practices in onshore wind, solar and hydrogen development. “We are an island nation, but we cannot operate in isolation. For instance, we rely on input from other companies and agencies to understand how green hydrogen will evolve and how we can move it forward in an Irish context.”

Recycling Helping to guide Ireland towards a new circular economy, Bord na Móna’s waste innovation is aimed at contributing to a reduction in the national carbon footprint and supporting waste policy. “We already have plastics and tyre recycling activities, and we will be broadening those over the next decade,” McGrath says. Moving beyond waste management, Bord na Móna is focused on helping Ireland transition to a circular economy. This entails rethinking waste solutions for climate action, repurposing waste into commodities, reducing what is

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renewable energy magazine exported overseas, and minimising what is sent to landfill. Bord na Móna Recycling is the company’s waste management business and collects over 450,000 tonnes of waste from a customer base exceeding 135,500 people and organisations. For example, already, Bord na Móna recycles over four million tyres annually at its rubber processing facility in County Louth. Likewise, each year it transforms over 25,000 tonnes of food and organic waste into marketable compost while, at the same time, CH4 from its landfill is captured and used to generate enough electricity to power 8,500 homes. However, as a country, McGrath maintains, Ireland is relatively far behind in the innovative waste management space. “We are looking at very significant investments in that area, particularly in the next two or three years. If government and EU

policy supports it, these can be attractive investments for us and Bord na Móna can help to move the needle on that agenda.” As such, the company has a pipeline of investment valued at up to €100 million over the next 10 years, spanning mechanical biological treatment plants, biogas from waste, and anaerobic digestion.

Restoration and rehabilitation When extracting peat, the first step of the process is draining water from the peatlands before cutting. That process is a significant contributor to carbon into the environment. Once the peat is harvested and subsequently burnt, an additional layer of carbon emissions is introduced. However, while some peatlands were drained, they were never harvested. As such, Bord na Móna is seeking to

restore as much raised bog to its natural state as possible. This means rewetting bogs through the blocking of drains via dams made of either peat or plastic, enabling them to return to peatforming conditions. To date, over 7,200 hectares of bog have been restored to peat-forming conditions with an aim of restoring a total of 8,125 hectares. Meanwhile, cutaway bogs which cannot be restored are instead being rehabilitated into new habitats, encouraging indigenous species of plant to regrow. Already, almost 19,800 hectares of bog have been rehabilitated with an ambition in the company’s current Peatland Climate Action Scheme to rehabilitate over 30,000 hectares. “We have a vision for our peatlands,” McGrath asserts. “Consider then a rehabilitated and rewetted area of peatland existing side-by-side with a renewable energy windfarm, which requires only a 5 per cent footprint on a bog, as well as the potential for public

amenities such as walking trails, cycle paths, parks and even visitor centres to encourage people to visit these beautiful natural environments. That is the type of ambition that we are working towards.”

Vision

“Our model ticks all of the boxes for the Midlands. It is a virtuous circle which benefits the environment while the commercial value of the electricity generated by the windfarms will fund continued rehabilitation of peatlands into perpetuity. It is a very attractive proposition.”

Emerging from the 2020/2021 financial year with a return to profitability for the first time in about six years, Bord na Móna anticipates a strong performance in 2021/2022. “We have the fundamental building blocks to be very successful and we want to move at a pace that delivers on our agenda,” he outlines.

New business

At the same time, Bord na Móna’s new business strategy is dominated by support for new jobs and enterprises in the Midlands, in collaboration with Just Transition Commissioner Kieran Mulvey. “We are acting as an incubator to support new businesses, particularly in the Midlands, through the provisions of facilities and funding,” McGrath explains. “Bord na Móna is making available facilities, including workshops, warehouses and office locations while simultaneously, matching some of the funding from government agencies, helping entrepreneurs with ideas that we are prepared to invest in.”

Challenges Considering the most significant obstacle currently facing Bord na Móna, the CFO and COO identifies the industry-wide challenge of planning for renewable development. “The planning regime in Ireland can be challenging, both in terms of the length of time it takes to get planning permission and the layers of challenges that can emerge. “That creates a significant difficulty for the delivery of national climate targets. We must examine ways to address that challenge and create a more pragmatic planning environment if we want to achieve these targets,” he determines.

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A significant component of Bord na Móna’s mission is to contribute to local communities in the Midlands and the CFO and COO anticipates that the development of commercial activities will contribute close to €10 million per annum.

Bord na Móna’s overarching ambition is to be a leading and commercially successful climate solutions company. “We want to be a source of high-quality job and a business that the people of the Midlands, and the wider country, can be proud of. Bord na Móna can be an international exemplar of a business that completely transforms itself and assumes a leadership role in delivering climate solutions. If we can deliver that, which we are confident that we can, it will be a great achievement,” McGrath insists.

“The story of Bord na Móna is a very positive one. From a business perspective, we are playing to megatrends such as the green agenda, which is potentially very commercially successful. Ultimately, Bord na Móna’s profitability is recycled back into employment, the environment and government via dividends and tax. If we are successful, then it is a success story for Ireland Inc as well. “As a commercial organisation, Bord na Móna is quite niche. We are not as big an organisation as ESB. As such, we are relatively agile; our decision-making is rapid. Under the right circumstances, including a pragmatic planning environment, we can contribute to the rapid delivery of the decarbonisation agenda. “It’s a simple enough story,” McGrath remarks, concluding: “We are very clear on where we are going and so now the focus is on execution and scaling up.”

“Ultimately, Bord na Móna’s profitability is recycled back into employment, the environment and government via dividends and tax. If we are successful, then it is a success story for Ireland Inc as well.” Profile: JP McGrath A native of Coalisland, County Tyrone, JP McGrath studied international commerce at UCD and is a chartered accountant by training. Having previously worked at PwC, he then moved into the food industry, joining the Irish Dairy Board and more recently Aryzta where he was managing director of its Europe and Asia Pacific division. Prior to joining Bord na Móna, JP worked at Norbrook Laboratories where he was CFO.

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Decarbonising Europe’s economy Director responsible for the Green Transition and Energy System Integration in DG Energy at the European Commission, Catharina Sikow-Magny, says that ambitious targets and agreed pathways are the cornerstones of plans to decarbonise Europe’s economy. Speaking in the context of the European Climate Law, which made endorsement of climate neutrality of the European Union by 2050 and the European Council’s decision to increase the greenhouse gas reduction target to 55 per cent by 2030 legally binding, SikowMagny assesses good progress across the EU in reaching the collective 20 per cent target by 2020 for renewables. However, the Director of energy system integration admits that, although onethird of the EU’s electricity is being generated by renewable sources, other sectors including transport and heating and cooling have been slow to decarbonise across the EU. Acknowledging that this overall assessment correlates with what is happening in Ireland specifically, SikowMagny expresses the Commission’s

satisfaction that Ireland has entered into statistical transfers to meet its 2020 target, explaining that such use serves the exact purpose of why the transfers were introduced under the Renewables Directive. The Director states that despite evident progress, ambitions across the EU must now be increased to meet the new 55 per cent greenhouse gas target reduction by 2030. “In renewables this means that we need to look to a more ambitious target probably somewhere between 38 to 40 per cent for 2030, according to our assessments, significantly higher than the existing 32 per cent target,” she explains. Sikow-Magny outlines that for electricity this probably means a target of around

65 per cent of all electricity consumed across the EU coming from renewable sources. To this end, the EU Commission representative welcomes the Irish Government’s aim to position itself as a leader in this area and its 70 per cent renewable electricity target by 2030. However, Sikow-Magny stresses the importance of a focus across EU member states not solely on the targets but also systems to make renewables work, including storage, flexibility, interconnection, and industrial processes. “These are important challenges, and we need to ensure that high renewable production will be matched with high reliability and security of supply,” she adds.

Pointing to how the EU Commission is seeking to address these challenges, the Director says that the implementation of the legal acts of the Clean Energy Package, in a timely manner, is critical. Following the transposition deadline of the Electricity Directive at the end of 2020, the Renewables Directive had to be transposed into national law by member states by June 2021.

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The Director believes that the Renewables Directive will underpin and bring about a circular economy and biodiversity protections. Alongside implementation of the Clean Energy Package, the Commission is currently reviewing all legislation across all sectors to see where improvements are needed to reach the 55 per cent target. “We need to assess the renewables target but we also need to ensure that our renewables target is underpinned by all of the relevant elements from the Energy System Integration Strategy, which outlines how the EU Green Deal can be implemented in the energy sector,” explains Sikow-Magny. “We have already started some of this latest legislative work. Last December, we proposed a review of the TransEuropean Networks guidelines to ensure it is fit for the future and amongst other things, while keeping a focus on electrification and electricity interconnection, we will start looking at how to bring renewable gases and hydrogen into the system.” By the end of 2021, the EU Commission plans to propose a package on how to decarbonise gas, how to bring hydrogen to the market and how to diffuse methane emissions from different sectors. “We have a busy year ahead of us not just in implementation but also preparing new legislation to improve and raise the ambition,” she summarises.

Offshore Turning to Ireland’s decarbonisation journey, the EU Commission representative highlights interest in the EU strategy on offshore renewable energy published in November 2020. Sikow-Magny outlines that the strategy aims to tap into the huge potential of offshore renewable energy and to enshrine the EU offshore industry as a

global powerhouse in offshore technologies. “Our aim is to remove barriers so that we can reach a goal of in the region of 300GW of offshore wind and 40GW of ocean energy across our sea basins by 2050,” she explains. “The strategy presents a way to shift our thinking to support the whole value chain in two main areas. Firstly, we need to move from national borders in the sea to look at the best sea basins globally and together. Regional cooperation is key. We must encourage industry to work with us and not in silos. “Secondly, we need the right electricity grid to bring power onshore efficiently and directly to consumers. The TransEuropean Energy Networks guidelines review proposes ambitions transformations on grid development, including the Celtic Interconnector as one of its flagship projects. “The ambitious offshore wind target of 5GW that we have seen in the Irish strategy by 2030 is an important contribution to this overall offshore strategy and we are looking forward to continuing the cooperation in this area with Ireland.”

Just transition Another critical element of decarbonisation success highlighted by Sikow-Magny is the EU Commission’s investment strategy to ensure a just transition. “European regions differ one from the

other in resources and carbon intensity and therefore, an important element of the Green Deal is to ensure that the energy transition also brings social benefits to all of our regions. Transformation of the economy must be fair and ensure that nobody is left behind. “A just transition will bring more sustainability and more resilient Europe in all dimensions, be they environmental, economic or social. We have noted again with appreciation and interest the design of Ireland’s new RESS scheme with quite innovative solutions to support participation and engagement of local communities. This is, of course, key in any change and investment in infrastructure project. Concluding, Sikow-Magny says: “2030 is tomorrow. Nine years is an extremely short time in the energy industry, but we believe our ambitious targets are realistic. Over the past decade we have seen the cost of renewable energy decrease dramatically. For wind, costs have fallen in the region of 70 per cent and in solar PV, close to 90 per cent. We expect similar cost reductions in the new areas such as hydrogen, electrolysis, and decarbonising gas through waste. “All this is possible when we have an ambitious target and when we have an agreed pathway. We can be confident that despite being very ambitious we also have a very realistic plan ahead of us. The key is to work together to make change happen.”

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How active consumers can facilitate greater integration of renewables

The traditional flow of energy was unidirectional, from large generators to customers with suppliers acting as intermediaries. This relationship is beginning to be transformed however, as more consumers are installing small-scale generation and consumers are being empowered to become active in the transition to a low-carbon economy, through demand response. The Clean Energy for all Europeans Package (CEP) is a set of EU Regulations and Directives aimed at setting requirements that will enable the EU to meet its renewable goals and targets set out at the Paris Agreement in 2015. Two of the main documents in this package include the Electricity Directive (EU) 2019/944 (IMED) and the Renewables Directive (EU) 2018/2001 (REDII). A key element of these directives is the inclusion of small-scale market actors in the energy sector, such as individuals and energy communities who will be integral in developing and participating in new energy activities and opportunities, previously only available to large suppliers and network operators. As smart meters continue to be rolled 14

out in Ireland, consumers will have more opportunity to become aware of their energy usage and realise how it affects the wider electricity grid. Their active consumption can lead to an understanding of the source of the energy they use, and the opportunity to use greener and cheaper electricity at different times of day, or in different weather conditions. This understanding can then be translated into action if an individual or a group of individuals forming an energy community want to become more involved in maximising their local area’s decarbonisation efforts. The CRU is in the process of developing an enabling regulatory framework that will facilitate the participation of active consumers and energy communities in the Irish electricity sector. An active

consumer is an individual who generates renewable energy for their own consumption, sells or stores excess generated electricity, participates in energy efficiency schemes, or provides flexibility services to the distribution system operator, provided none of these activities are their primary profession. An energy community is considered a group of active consumers who voluntarily commit to providing environmental, social, or economic welfare by engaging in renewable energy generation, energy sharing or trading, storage, or supply, provided these activities are not for commercial purposes and do not constitute the primary profession of any of the members of the community. Ireland has a well-developed network of

existing Sustainable Energy Communities (SECs) who actively participate through the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland’s SEC Programme. The concepts of energy communities detailed in the directives, however, depict a different model than the existing SECs. Energy communities under the CEP would be encouraged to partake in specific energy activities that would help integrate more renewable energy into Ireland’s energy system.

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Generation: Consumers should be able to produce renewable electricity for self-consumption. For example, this could include installing solar PV panels on rooftops, or installing a small wind turbine that provides energy to community members. Supply: Consumers should be able to sell electricity from individually owned or community owned generation assets. Additionally, in selling this electricity, consumers should be renumerated for excess electricity supplied to the grid. Storage: Consumers should be able to own an energy storage unit and not be faced with barriers while connecting to the grid. Sharing: Members of a community or jointly acting active consumers located in the same apartment building or complex should be able to share self-produced electricity among themselves.

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Trading: Consumers should be able to participate in peer-to-peer trading arrangements.

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Flexibility and demand response: Consumers should be able to provide services to the distribution system operators to provide flexibility to the grid. This could involve avoiding using large appliances at times of peak demand or turning off appliances when notifications are received that there is congestion on the grid.

Energy communities and active consumers are entitled to engage in these activities on their own, or by using an aggregator, who would be an entity that pools consumer loads and operates in the electricity markets on their behalf. Additionally, energy communities can hire a third-party to install, operate, or maintain their renewable energy project. The use of aggregators and third parties

renewable energy magazine

The activities that active consumers and energy communities may partake in to play their part in the transition towards cleaner energy and higher renewable energy integration include the following:

“The CRU is in the process of developing an enabling regulatory framework that will facilitate the participation of active consumers and energy communities in the Irish electricity sector. An active consumer is an individual who generates renewable energy for their own consumption, sells or stores excess generated electricity, participates in energy efficiency schemes, or provides flexibility services to the distribution system operator.”

should enable more community participation from non-industry experts that want to play their part in integrating more renewables into the system. Another key entity in the facilitation of active consumers and energy communities will be the distribution system operator. ESB Networks will have a role to play in facilitating community development and enabling participation in activities such as energy sharing and demand response. It has begun assessing the changes needed to enable these forms of participation, and the CRU will continue to engage with ESB Networks as these concepts develop further. The CRU has also begun discussions with prospective energy communities to identify regulatory barriers which could cause challenges in the progression of their projects. Two calls for evidence and one consultation have already been published as the CRU started exploring these topics. The papers mainly presented subjects, such as regulatory oversight, at a high-level to highlight the challenges of incorporating new market actors and small-scale individuals and energy communities into the energy sector.

More recently, the CRU took a step in a new direction to engage energy communities directly through webinars, where an open format allowed for constructive discussions and the opportunity for the CRU to learn from the most impacted stakeholders; the active consumers themselves. From these engagements, the CRU has developed a strategy for the development of the enabling regulatory framework which will be progressed in the upcoming years. The framework will take time to develop fully, but once completed, it should be flexible enough to allow participation in all forms of energy activities by active consumers and energy communities. This would then enable a higher integration of renewable energy being used by small scale market actors in ways that were unavailable to these individuals and communities in the past and will empower consumers to play a larger role in the transition towards using cleaner energy.

T: +353 1 4000 800 E: krichardson@cru.ie W: www.cru.ie

Delivering urgency in Ireland’s response to the climate crisis roundtable discussion

SSE Renewables hosted a virtual round table discussion, engaging experts from across the energy sector, including within government, industry, and NGOs, to discern how the urgency evident in Ireland’s reaction to the Covid-19 pandemic can be instilled in its response to the climate crisis. To what extent will the ambitious Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act and impending Climate Action Plan 2021 accelerate Ireland’s response to the climate crisis? Brian Leddin The Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act will significantly accelerate ambition. It is important to note that it is not the first piece of climate legislation that we have had, and I would commend my colleague on the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action, and former Environment Minister, Richard Bruton TD who kickstarted much of the good work in the last administration. We now have a very significant Climate Act, which is framework legislation that will guide the carbon budget process, alongside the annually revisable climate action plans. It remains to be seen how it will play out, but I think that there are a lot of safeguards in there, particularly the annually revisable climate action plans that will ensure that we are on track to

meet the 2030 goal, as well as the 2050 goal. Maria Ryan SSE Renewables welcomes the Climate Act. What we now need is action, urgency, and resources in order to accelerate Ireland’s response to climate change. The carbon budgets must be ambitious. We cannot backload reductions to the end of the decade without the risk of missing our targets. The deployment of offshore wind offers a proven and effective way to accelerate our response to the climate crisis. We intend to deploy our first offshore windfarm at Arklow Bank by the middle of the decade. In the context of declining capacity in the Irish market, it makes even more sense to attempt to frontload the offshore capacity that is there. Both the Tánaiste and the Environment Minister have referenced offshore wind as being a major part of the solution, given we have some of the best offshore resources in the world. In relation to climate action plans, it is great that they will be annually revised. When we look back to the Climate Action Plan 2019, it included an interim

target of 1GW of offshore by 2025 which seems to have been quietly abandoned. We must ensure that the climate action plans are tangible, very clear and focused on driving the delivery of interim targets. Seán Kelly I thank Brian for referencing the work of my colleague, Richard Bruton, with whom I undertook a lot of work in relation to the preparing the groundwork for the legislation. Now, with the support of the Greens in government, and with the agreed action plan, we will see rapid progress. This must embrace all sectors, not just renewable energy. It must include transport, energy, industry, and agriculture. There is no such thing as a free pass. Everyone has an obligation, and everyone has an opportunity. I would like to see that incorporated in the Government’s Climate Action Plan. The carbon budgets will be very important in putting money behind projects and encouraging investment. Offshore wind will have a major part to play but we must also explore the opportunity in relation to wave and tidal.

John Melvin The electricity industry has been active and busy for the last decade in striving to meet the 2020 targets of 40 per cent and it is already active on the actions contained within Climate Action Plan 2019. With regard to the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act, as a creature of statute, CRU recognises that law is more powerful and more enduring than policy. Policy can be changed by government, whereas a change in law requires the Oireachtas. The Act describes the ultimate objective: a climate resilient, biodiversity rich and climate neutral economy by no later than 2050. The mention of 2050 is important in relation to the climate action plans as a firm long-term objective. It is important that the enduring nature of the Act and the longterm reporting contained within it will increase the likelihood that we will reach 2050 having achieved that goal. References to beyond 2030 within the Act will help us to deliver a more secure transition. Knowing what the ultimate goal is, people are more likely to invest.

Roundtable Participants Oisín Coghlan Oisín Coghlan has been Director of Friends of the Earth since 2005. He co-founded the Stop Climate Chaos Coalition in 2007 and the Environmental Pillar in 2009 and led the 14-year campaign for a climate law which culminated in the passing of the Climate Action Act 2021. He is the current chair of Coalition 2030, the Irish civil society coalition for the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Tanya Harrington Tanya Harrington is the Chairperson of Renewable Energy Ireland. Tanya is a public policy and regulatory affairs professional with over 20 years’ experience in helping organisations drive the effectiveness and performance of their policy-focused teams. Tanya currently serves as An Post’s Chief Regulatory Affairs Officer, leading the development of the Company’s comprehensive and integrated regulatory strategy and leading An Post’s engagement with government and regulatory authorities and stakeholders at international, European and domestic levels.

Tanya Harrington As a summer of extreme weather ebbs away, as we have experienced locally and observed globally, together with the ‘code red for humanity’ in the latest IPCC report, the case for broad and collective action on the climate crisis has been clarified, yet again. With time against us and action urgently required at individual, local, community, national and international levels, across our homes, workplaces and nations, action must be taken in the early years of this decade. The Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act, as well as the Climate Action Plan, once it is published, will provide the necessary legislative and regulatory framework for action and accountability, but the rapid implementation of measures must be the focus of work wherever we have influence to bear.

John Melvin John Melvin was appointed as the Director of Energy Markets and Smart Metering in CRU May 2018. Previously, he was Director of Energy Networks and Legal. John Melvin is responsible for overseeing all aspects of competition and consumer protection in the energy retail markets in Ireland and the wholesale all-island electricity market (SEM) in cooperation with the Utility Regulator in Belfast. John has responsibility for the overall coordination of the Smart Meter Upgrade Project. Seán Kelly Seán Kelly has been a Member of the European Parliament for Ireland South since 2009. He is the current leader of Fine Gael in the European Parliament, and part of the European People’s Party (EPP) Group. Seán sits on the European Parliament’s Committees on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE), International Trade (INTA) and Constitutional Affairs (AFCO). Seán was also EPP Rapporteur for the Renewable Energy Directive, which included a target of 32 per cent renewable energy target by 2030. He is currently writing an Implementation Report on the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive.

Oisín Coghlan The Climate Act is a gamechanger. because it contains most of the key principles that Friends of the Earth has campaigned for over the past 15 years. This includes putting our national targets into domestic law, which is a far stronger driver than international obligations or even new targets. It gives a real impetus and certainty for households and investors. Other

roundtable discussion

Brian Leddin Brian Leddin is TD for Limerick City, Green Party spokesperson on Transport, Climate Action and the Environment, Chair of the Green Party in the Oireachtas and Chair of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action. Before being elected to the Dáil, he worked as a mechanical engineer in Limerick and was a councillor on Limerick City and County Council. Brian is an engineering graduate of the University of Limerick and holds an MSc in renewable energy systems technology at Loughborough University.

Maria Ryan Maria Ryan is Director of Development, Ireland at SSE Renewables, part of the FTSE-listed SSE plc and the leading developer, owner, and operator of renewable energy across Ireland and the UK. Maria has responsibility for development and construction of SSE Renewables’ pipeline of offshore and onshore wind energy projects around the island of Ireland. Maria has extensive experience having worked in the wind energy industry for 18 years, holding portfolio management roles across Airtricity, Mainstream Renewable Power and SSE Renewables. Maria is chartered engineer and a graduate of mechanical engineering from University College Dublin (UCD) with an MSc from UCD.

roundtable discussion

elements of the Act are equally important, including the strengthened role for independent advisory and monitory experts in the form of the Climate Change Advisory Council [CCAC]. The requirement for annual plans and for the plans to be aligned to targets is essential. Through the strength and accountability cycle, the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action, will, based on the annual assessment from the CCAC, bring in the ministers of all the relevant departments and hold them to account for their performance. This is maturing and repetitive accountability that we need to hardwire climate policy into the system and to bring it into a space which is far more transparent than it has been in the last 20 years. The Climate Action Plan, therefore, should accelerate Ireland’s response to the climate crisis. It is supposed to be a doubling of the rate in reductions, even compared with Climate Action Plan 2019, which in itself was a vast improvement on the 2017 Plan. We describe this as the race of a lifetime; the race to eliminate all emissions quickly enough to prevent complete climate breakdown and fairly enough to leave no one behind.

What are the major obstacles inhibiting urgent and effective climate action in Ireland? Oisín Coghlan I believe inertia and vested interests are the two largest obstacles. Across 15 government departments, it will be difficult to remove inertia fast enough to give us the scale of change that we need, as rapidly as we need it. In terms of interests, there are both public and private organisations that have invested

“There is a real opportunity for a green recovery by unlocking private investment in renewable energy. It is a win-win for the economy, for the environment and for the capacity challenges that we are having.” Maria Ryan

a lot in the status quo and who have over many years sought to dilute or delay action on climate. The change in law alters the dynamic significantly because it reframes the narrative to one where departments and their sectors are fighting for their share of the ‘pollution pie’. It should mean that the direction of travel is clearer and create an enabling environment for government to take decisions easier. Seán Kelly The planning system is a leading obstacle and one that is not being tackled. I believe that if a project is in the public good and it helps reduce emissions then a time limit should be set for a decision, with failure to do so resulting in award by default. Bureaucracy at government level is another inhibiting factor. Our performance on forestry, when compared to the rest of the EU, is a prime example of how rules and regulations make it difficult for stakeholders to engage and therefore, maximum benefit is not achieved. We cannot have a situation where actions, which are in the interest of the environment and of the public good, are avoided because of bureaucracy.

“With regard to the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act, as a creature of statute, CRU recognises that law is more powerful and more enduring than policy.” John Melvin 18

Tanya Harrington Ireland is rightly viewed as a world leader in integration of renewable energy, thanks to excellent work by ESB Networks and EirGrid teams, but I think we have reached a point now where further decarbonisation of the energy sector will require significant investment in the grid and market systems to enable us to achieve our targets. Additionally, we need to think about how we manage the demand response and other technological solutions, particularly in the heat sector, in order to decarbonise further. We must acknowledge that our citizens and our children are ahead of government in championing climate change. We must fast track the removal of all planning or market-based obstacles to ensure rapid delivery of renewable energy technologies and utilise our collective minds and efforts. Brian Leddin I agree that our citizenry and our children are ahead of the establishment. I see a very business-as-usual approach within the institutions of the State and that is something that needs to be addressed. In tackling climate action, we need to do so in a way that respects citizens’ and communities’ rights, but the challenge will be undertaking this quickly. Historically, we have been very poor at community engagement and the reality is that if individuals or communities feel like they are being disenfranchised by climate action, then it will not work. We need good engagement with communities up and down the country to help them understand why these changes are necessary. John Melvin The most significant obstacles are social acceptance, the need to change our own behaviours and the need for more infrastructure. New, additional

infrastructure is going to be necessary to make the energy transition and we will need more renewable and conventional generation if we are to meet demand. Change will be required and if we do not make those changes in a controlled way, then they will happen around us in an uncontrollable fashion. Behaviour is also an obstacle. My generation grew up in a time of cheap energy, but we must have a greater consciousness of the effect of our usage and our carbon footprint. Maria Ryan

Additionally, something that does not get raised often is the repowering of projects. By 2030 there will be in the region of 1,400MW worth of generation infrastructure, approximately 25 per cent, reaching the 20-year age bracket. The RESS terms and conditions are looking for any repowering projects to achieve a capacity increase of 50 per cent. That is not practical, and it says to me that how repowering is going to work has not actually been fully thought through. If we start dropping MW from the system, then our gap to the 70 per cent target is going to only get bigger.

Séan Kelly Firstly, the need to act quickly and secondly, the need to engage citizens. The risk to public health saw Irish people accept unprecedented measures during the pandemic and that was aided by good leadership and effective explanation. As a result, individuals recognised they had a role to play. This can be transferred to the climate crisis. Finally, taking vaccinations as an example, we as a country can be proud that we strived to be at the top of any comparisons with other EU member states and that is something we must take with us in taking climate action. Oisín Coghlan During the pandemic we still heard the legitimate concerns of industry and others, but we privileged the public interest over those sectoral interests, and we followed the science. In doing that, we supported those who had their short-term profits and employee livelihoods impacted by the measures required. Some of those lessons can be transferred. However, a comparison between the pandemic and the climate crisis has limitations because the perception of threat is different. The mindset is changing but the threat of climate change is not as immediate. I think individual responsibility is often overplayed in relation to climate. A lot of what needs to be done is about systems change, led by government, making less-polluting options accessible and affordable to all. Tanya Harrington Throughout the pandemic we showcased our strength for collective care, we adopted a people-centred approach, prioritising the vulnerable and

we leaned on the science, being guided by expertise. Those learnings will be important, as will lessons relating to communication. The manner in which NPHET, the Government, and the media articulated public health communications in a clear and concise fashion is commendable and it strikes me that a climate communication strategy would have benefit from a similar approach. I think we would do well to establish a ‘NPHET’ for climate action, which communicates the science on a daily basis, identifies immediate and readymade solutions for member states and citizens, prioritises the most vulnerable and communicates tirelessly progress to targets. Maria Ryan The pandemic showcased how quickly government could mobilise to address a significant crisis. The importance of cross-government coordination was highlighted. As such, it is welcome that the Climate Act supports this coordination in relation to decarbonisation. However, ensuring departments are responsible for delivery and that sufficient resources are being made available is crucial because an allof-government response is required to tackle the climate crisis.

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There have been many positive developments to date, but we are now experiencing delays across the energy sector. The Maritime Area Planning [MAP] Bill and the RESS-2 auctions are welcome developments, but they are experiencing delays. We have been waiting for the Wind Energy Development Guidelines for 18 months now. These need to be delivered. With the progression of the MAP Bill, it is important to note that we are aiming for delivery of additional renewable energy and the creation of an industry, in parallel. That is a huge amount of work, and all government departments and statutory bodies must be fully aligned and resourced if we are to deliver 5GW of offshore wind and double our onshore wind by the end of the decade. In particular, this target will require the processing of a large amount of planning applications and associated consultation. There is already evidence of a resourcing challenge, An Bord Pleanála (ABP) has a statutory objective of making decisions in 18 weeks which are often not met. There is an opportunity to create a dedicated renewable energy unit within An Bord Pleanála to address this. Misalignment between local and national planning policy is another obstacle we see in relation to planning and we welcome the role the newly formed Office of the Planning Regulator has played to date in scrutinising plans.

What lessons from the Covid experience can be applied to Ireland’s climate emergency response?

John Melvin The pandemic has shown us that government can and will act to meet challenges. Governments and industry can fund the future challenges of the climate crisis but there must be a willingness to do so. The Covid threat was obvious, immediate, and terrible. Yet, the climate crisis is not similarly perceived in the minds of people in government. Individuals were willing to

“We describe this as the race of a lifetime; the race to eliminate all emissions quickly enough to prevent complete climate breakdown and fairly enough to leave no one behind.” Oisín Coghlan 19

“For COP26 to be a long-term success, we must focus on protecting people as well as nature from the impact of climate change.”

make dramatic changes to their lives, not just for the sake of their loved ones but for the sake of strangers. Today, in the hearts and minds of the citizenry, climate change is a threat to millions of strangers and if we were willing to take action to protect others during Covid then we can choose to do so in relation to climate.

Seán Kelly

Brian Leddin

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The scale of change is so huge that we cannot underestimate the communication challenge. The concise messaging in relation to Covid-19 and the media’s role in communicating the challenge has not been applied to the climate crisis. The measures that Climate Action Plan 2021 and subsequent plans are going to require will face huge resistance in society and so, we must get the communication right. If we do not, then we will fail.

How can government and industry demonstrate leadership in transforming ambitions into action? Tanya Harrington An Post has put sustainability at the heart of what it does, built upon five specific sustainable development goals. Operating Ireland’s largest EV fleet, comprising over 1,000 electric vehicles and 100 electric trikes, An Post is providing emission-free deliveries in five cities. We will soon extend this to all of our cities, which will make us the first postal company in the world to have citywide zero carbon postal deliveries. Simultaneously, we use 100 per cent renewable energy in all of our buildings, we have zero waste to landfill, and our

water usage has been reduced by 30 per cent compared with 2019. As a company, we are now focused on two things: firstly, developing our strategy to have net zero emissions by 2030 and secondly, developing our biodiversity strategy in tandem. As one of Ireland’s SDG champions, An Post is committed to sharing our learning and collaborating with government, as well as public and private sector organisations for the drive to sustainability. Maria Ryan The economy was seriously impacted over the last 18 months because of Covid. There is a real opportunity for a green recovery by unlocking private investment in renewable energy. It is a win-win for the economy, for the environment and for the capacity challenges that we are having. SSE Renewables is here and ready to deliver. We have a target of 2GW of offshore and 700MW of onshore by 2030, alongside an additional 1GW of offshore by 2035. If we take Arklow Bank, which is ready to be delivered by 2025, as an example, at its minimum capacity of 520MW, that is over €860

“Historically, we have been very poor at community engagement and the reality is that if individuals or communities feel like they are being disenfranchised by climate action, then it will not work.” Brian Leddin

million GVA to the island of Ireland. Half of that will stay in Wicklow and north Wexford, creating 10,500 full-time equivalent years nationally and 4,800 of those will be local. In the construction phase, there will be hundreds of jobs followed by 80 full-time operations and maintenance roles. Arklow Harbour has been designated the operations and maintenance base, which is a welcome redevelopment for the area. Once it is generating, it will provide millions of euro in terms of community funding and once it is complete, it will power at least 500,000 homes and offset over 600,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions. That is just one offshore project at its minimum. John Melvin The electricity industry has already demonstrated leadership in the sense that it has world leading instantaneous penetration of renewables for a very small island. In terms of the Climate Action Plan 2019, already we have had the first Renewable Electricity Support Scheme auction. The transmission and distribution operators are funded and incentivised to ensure that the necessary wires and systems services can get in place. In terms of the services themselves, the markets to ensure that the system can handle increased renewable electricity are being progressed by the Single Electricity Market (SEM) Committee. Similarly, the SEM Committee is holding capacity auctions to ensure that we can have the vital backup power when it is needed. For the transition to succeed, people must be confident that we have a stable and secure electricity system. That means gas fired infrastructure will be built. A way to assist that happening is to have a clear national policy towards decarbonising the gas grid.

Oisín Coghlan Clear and consistent communication from the Government is key to its leadership, as well as the key decisions required in the coming weeks. On the other hand, businesses should be vocal and proud of what they are doing to cut emissions and deliver on climate action. It is important to have business voices championing the fact that this is going to be good for communities and jobs. As well as all the innovation, research and development and investment that industry is undertaking. I do not think that we should be focused on decarbonising the gas grid because we risk locking ourselves into gas for far too long. Instead, the focus should be on decarbonising electricity. Brian Leddin

John Melvin Guided by the science and the current state of technology, it is clear that to have a secure transition, further gas fired plant will be needed at this stage.

How will COP26 catalyse a concerted and coherent effort to build the net zero carbon, climate resilient future? Maria Ryan SSE is delighted to be a principal partner for COP26, which fits into our vision of being a leading energy provider in a netzero world. I do not think the importance

Tanya Harrington

of the Glasgow conference can be overstated. We are at a critical juncture, and we have run out of road. We must act now, or changes will start occurring that we have no control over. We have observed extreme weather events becoming more severe and more regular. We are short on time, so what we need to see emerge from COP26 is international leadership and global action to decarbonise. Oisín Coughlan I hope that COP26 will inject real momentum to action at a national level around the world, particularly with the return of the US to a position of active engagement on targets and plans for action which are commensurate with the Paris Agreement. However, there is one problem which is coming to a head. Again, we talked about public buy in and in the global climate debate, the importance of trust between the global north and the global south. I have concerns about the promises made around financing, never mind the promises made around emissions themselves. Promises made around financing in Paris have not materialised. That is undermining trust in the global south and hindering agreement. John Melvin In the context of the Covid pandemic, COP26 has a great opportunity to catalyse things that have almost

roundtable discussion

We have to be very careful that we do not lock in gas for the next 30 years. I really believe that we can decarbonise very quickly. That is something that was not apparent to most people until very recently. It is fascinating to look at how the discussions around the west coast opportunity have surfaced in the last 18 months. It was something I am proud of wedging into the Programme for Government. With respect to leadership, within politics and among senior positions in industry or media, I think personal responsibility applies. When people like myself speak, people listen, and we influence people. That certainly does have a role to play. The second point I would make is that to make progress here, we must have honest conversations and treat each other with respect. That is not to say that we cannot have robust debate. Friends of the Earth has led the way on this and anything it has ever done is underpinned by science. That is very important and if we lose that honest debate then things are going to be much harder for us.

“We must fast track the removal of all planning or market-based obstacles to ensure rapid delivery of renewable energy technologies and utilise our collective minds and efforts.”

crystalised in peoples’ consciousnesses. Covid required personal, local, national, and global responses. The global response to Covid-19 has not been great. Without an effective global response to the climate crisis, we will not succeed and the ‘I’m not really affected, why should I act when others don’t’ argument will re-emerge. Now is the time to catalyse on the common feeling of humanity, but simultaneously we need a global approach to Covid to illustrate the pathway that is required for climate action. Seán Kelly The UN climate conference in Glasgow must signal a turning point in our attempts to tackle the climate emergency. I am hopeful that COP26 will catalyse decisive action among the world’s nations to limit the average rise in global temperature to 1.5oC. The need to act with urgency has never been clearer and action is needed in many vital areas, such as developing clean transport solutions, retrofitting our homes and the halting of deforestation. For COP26 to be a long-term success, we must focus on protecting people as well as nature from the impact of climate change. We need to focus on getting every part of society on board with this plan and securing the financial assistance to build a climate resilient future.

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Carbon budgets: Moving from climate ambition to climate action MaREI Director Professor Brian Ó Gallachóir discusses the role of carbon budgets in the interface between climate ambition to climate action and explores some of the tough choices that need to be made in relation to pathways. Ó Gallachóir, a member of the enhanced Climate Change Advisory Council’s carbon budgets committee, believes that climate ambition has tended to focus on the end goals, rather than on the pathways required to get there. Discussing the enshrinement in policy of the 30 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions target in 2019, later raised to 51 per cent through the Programme for Government and bolstered by a net-zero carbon

target by 2050, Ó Gallachóir says: “These endpoint targets are very important but they are not the full story. The pathway to get to that endpoint is critical and carbon budgets play a key role in that.” Ó Gallachóir highlights that a climate neutrality objective by 2050 does not outline a pathway and examples the challenge in this by posing the question: “Do we look to a linear trajectory, or do we approach this in a different way?”

When seeking an answer to such a question, the academic states that it is worth reflecting on the past. From 1990 Ireland’s emissions grew to a peak in 2005, correlating with significant economic growth. A 20 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions since 2005, while welcomed, cannot be credited to successful climate policy alone, when considering the effect of the economic recession and the Covid19 pandemic on emission reductions. Ó Gallachóir is quick to point out that

Figure 1: Illustrative decarbonisation trajectories to 2050

2020

2030

2040

Linear

2050

2020

2030

2040

Late action

2050

2020

2030

2040

renewable energy magazine

MtCO2 (illustra ve)

Early action

2050

Each pathway above reaches the same 2050 goal of net-zero CO2 emissions, but in the late action pathway, cumulative emissions are double that of the early action pathway, leading to double the warming impact

some progress has been made, specifically pointing to success in greenhouse gas emission reduction in energy, which has removed some 12 MtCO2eq through things like renewable energy and energy efficiency.

“The pathway to get to that

“When we consider the pathway to 2050, it is very important in the context of our cumulative emissions. The pathway has a key impact in terms of the contribution to climate change because it is the cumulative emissions that we release into the atmosphere that influence the level of temperature rise.”

budgets play a key role in that.”

A discussion paper developed by MaREI (Figure 1) illustrates how alternative carbon budgets will deliver different pathways. All of the pathways illustrated reach carbon neutrality by 2050 but as Ó Gallachóir points out, each has very different implications for the temperature rise. The Climate Action Bill calls for two different carbon budgets to be established in the period to 2030 and the Climate Change Advisory Committee (CCAC) is undertaking proposals on what these budgets will be. Ó Gallachóir is a member of the carbon budgets committee set up by the CCAC. The Advisory Council is to advise on the first three of the fiveyearly carbon budgets, with the first two focussed on the specific 51 per cent greenhouse gas emissions reduction by 2030. Offering a context to the scale of this

endpoint is critical and carbon

ambition over a 10-year period, the Director states that from 2018, no other country in the world has achieved a 51 per cent greenhouse gas reduction over a decade. Ireland’s 51 per cent reduction target compares to a 46 per cent reduction sought by the UK over the same period, an EU equivalent reduction of 41 per cent and a US ambition of 47 per cent. “Only Denmark is ahead with a 63 per cent emissions reduction target over this period,” he adds. Ó Gallachóir states that a number of open questions exist in relation to the development of carbon budgets. The first and most critical open question is around whether carbon budgets to 2030 should target early action or delayed action. Additionally, some questions have been raised as to how 2018 should be the starting point for a baseline and whether land use, land use change and forestry should be included in these budgets. Finally, the academic poses a question around how to weigh up different topics which need to be taken into account such as climate science, economic

competitiveness and climate justice. The academic demonstrates (Figure 2) a linear trajectory approach to 2030 which would point to a cumulative 269 Mt CO2eq carbon budget one (2021 to 2025) and a 188 Mt CO2eq reduction in carbon budget two (2026 to 2030). “It might be appropriate to consider a linear trajectory because the EU policy framework that we also need to be mindful of effectively has a linear carbon budget for non-ETS emissions for the period to 2030,” he adds. Highlighting the difference in the potential approaches, the Director says: “Clearly, if we are focussing on the emission contribution to temperature change, early intervention would be the best pathway. However, if we are thinking about distributional effects, a just transition in an Irish context and the impact on jobs and economic competitiveness on requirements for people to change so quickly, then the steer would be more towards a delayed trajectory.” Concluding, Ó Gallachóir states that carbon budgets are key to determining

4 23

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Greenhouse gas emissions (Mt CO2 eq) GWP100

Figure 2: Possible carbon budgets 2021-2030 70

0 2021

2022

2023

2024

2025

2026

2027

2028

2029

2030

Figure 3: Different pathways = Different budgets 2020-2030 Greenhouse gas emissions (Mt CO2 eq) GWP100

70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 2020

2021

2022

2023 Early action

2024

2025

2026

2027

Linear

2028

2029

2030

Delayed action

the pathway to 51 per cent MtCO2eq by 2030 and so many open questions remain under consideration by the CCAC.

Title

Period

Early action

Linear

Delayed action

CB1

2021-2025

239

269

299

“Achievability depends also on sectoral allocations, effective policies and measures, and societal participation,” he states. “However, I believe that the definition of achievability has changed in light of our experience with the pandemic. We have shown in the last year that we can do things differently

CB2

2026-2030

168

188

208

CB1+2

2021-2030

407

457

507

and this gives cause for hope. That

that there are a range of carbon budget

being said, it does not take away from

pathways that we need to make

the scale of the challenge and the fact

decisions on.”

Irish ports hold the key to unlocking our natural offshore wind resource

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With this resource on its doorstep, Ireland has an incredible opportunity to lead out in the production of a clean, renewable energy source for the island and to export surplus energy to our European partners. This is a once-in-ageneration opportunity which will enable the west of Ireland to retain its young people in productive employment locally, position itself as a leader in the green economy for foreign direct investment and provide a much-needed regional rebalancing of Irish economic activity. Irish ports hold the key to unlocking this vast economic potential. Ports will play a key role in providing the infrastructure for the offshore wind sector and are central to the development of this resource. Investment in and prioritisation of port infrastructure will assist in creating enterprise zones along the Atlantic coast where related industry can be located.

The great economic and social challenge of our age is to decouple economic growth from growth in carbon emissions. For most of the past century, economic growth and prosperity were directly linked to increasing carbon emissions. The results of this were laid bare in the recent UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report which warned humanity of the threat to our very existence, writes Conor O’Dowd, CEO, Galway Harbour Company. With such a stark outlook before us, it is

The International Energy Agency (IEA)

incumbent on us more than ever as an

forecasts that, by 2040, onshore and

industry to develop workable solutions.

offshore wind will be the main sources

Wind power and, in particular, offshore

of electricity generation while they also

wind power, has the potential to be a

predict that global offshore capacity may

key driver of economic growth without

increase 15-fold over the next two

increasing carbon emissions. Even prior

decades. Offshore wind off Ireland’s

to the pandemic, many governments

Atlantic Coast represents a natural

around the globe had already identified

energy resource with an economic

wind power as the cornerstone of the

potential akin to the fossil fuel reserves

global economic recovery.

of the Middle East.

These enterprise zones could be located in the main ports providing maintenance bases for the wind energy sector and also serving as enterprise hubs for our third level institutions, research bodies, indigenous companies and FDI. Such an approach is likely to maximise supply chain opportunities for Ireland and ensure that the economic benefits arising from this opportunity are retained locally. As we enter a new economic frontier in the post-Covid era, Ireland needs to grasp the opportunity to harness our natural resources to drive economic growth and be a global leader in the offshore renewable energy sector. Irish ports and their surrounding business communities can play a key role in developing the incredible natural resource of recurring natural wind off our Atlantic coast. The west of Ireland can lead the way on the green economy; unlocking the huge potential of our ports is the first step.

E: codowd@theportofgalway.com W: www.theportofgalway.com

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How ESB’s renewable energy focus is helping to deliver a brighter future counties Clare and Kerry in two phases by ESB and joint venture partners, Equinor. Once complete, the wind farm will be capable of powering more than 1.6 million Irish homes. Another significant development at Moneypoint will be the construction of a Synchronous Compensator which will help to manage grid stability, and in turn, enable higher volumes of renewable generation on the system. This will serve to reduce carbon emissions arising from both transmission operations and system constraints. The project started in August of this year following the appointment of Siemens Energy to carry out construction and engineering works.

Latest technology The Raheenleagh wind farm site is located in County Wicklow approximately 8 km west of Arklow. The project involves the installation of 11 Siemens turbines and associated civil works including a 16km underground cable from the site at Croghan Mountain to Arklow substation.

We have all seen the impact that human activity is having on our planet. ESB recognises that the time for action is now. It is universally accepted that electricity has a critical role to play in tackling climate change, and ESB is committed to a future powered by clean, reliable and affordable electricity. This year has seen significant milestones in ESB’s low carbon journey as it continues to grow its renewable energy portfolio and invest in a wide range of technologies and solutions to meet its net-zero ambition by 2050.

Low carbon innovation The first of these milestones was announced in April, as ESB works to reduce the carbon intensity of its 26

generation mix and shape the future of the energy system was outlined with Green Atlantic@Moneypoint. Under the programme, and in line with the Government’s ambitious emissions reduction targets, ESB’s Moneypoint site in County Clare will be transformed into a green energy hub, helping Ireland to become a leader in sustainable energy production. This multi-billion-euro investment programme will create hundreds of jobs for surrounding communities over the next decade. It includes plans for a floating offshore wind farm of 1,400MW that will be developed off the coast of

ESB’s renewable energy focus means that it is constantly evolving, innovating and harnessing the resources of the entire organisation to make the transition to clean, low carbon electricity a reality. One significant area of innovation is around the development of large-scale infrastructure to produce green hydrogen from renewable sources. This clean, zero-carbon fuel will support the decarbonisation of the energy system and transform industries where direct electrification is not feasible such as heavy transport, shipping, industrial processes and backup power generation. ESB’s plans include a green hydrogen production, storage and generation facility at Moneypoint towards the end of the decade. In recent months, ESB announced that it has partnered with dCarbonX on the assessment and development of Irish offshore green hydrogen subsurface storage. This covers all areas that are adjacent to ESB’s existing and planned future infrastructure and will support the creation of a proposed new ‘Green

Hydrogen Valley’ centred around the Poolbeg peninsula in Dublin.

The partnership represents a milestone in Ireland’s emerging hydrogen economy, and an exciting development in ESB’s sustainable energy transition.

The drive to renewables These latest developments are taking place alongside other initiatives by ESB to support the electrification of the transport and heating sectors, including a major project to upgrade and enhance the public charging infrastructure for electric vehicles (EVs) across Ireland. This project supports the Government target to significantly grow the number of EVs on Irish roads to almost one million by 2030. In July, a new eight-bay charging hub was opened at Junction 14 Mayfield on the M7, marking the latest development in ESB’s €20 million infrastructure investment programme, supported by the Government’s Climate Action Fund (CAF). The high-power charging hub is capable of providing 100km of charge in as little as six minutes. In addition, more than 200 22kW standard chargers were upgraded

Artist's impression of the new Moneypoint Renewable Energy Hub in County Clare.

across Ireland in the first half of the year, with 21 standard chargers upgraded to 50kW fast chargers at key locations. These fast chargers enable drivers to get an 80 per cent charge in less than 30 minutes. The number of charge points available for public charging across the island of Ireland, currently totalling 1,800, is expected to increase as government supports for local authorities are introduced and other players enter Ireland’s growing market, one that will play a crucial role in reducing emissions.

We all must play our part While huge progress has been made over the past decade in preparing Ireland’s electricity system for a new, low carbon future, much of this work is being completed within the industry and out of sight of customers. We are now entering a new phase of the transition where customers will have a key role to play, not only by adopting new technologies but also by moderating their use of electricity to help make the system more efficient.

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In August, the two companies launched Green Hydrogen@Kinsale, an integrated project to develop large-scale storage for green hydrogen off the coast of County Cork that could have the potential to store up to 3 TWh of green hydrogen and hydrogen carriers – the equivalent of approximately 10 per cent of current Irish annual electricity consumption.

New innovations and solutions are emerging all the time, but technology is just part of the answer. A cultural and behavioural shift is needed to tackle climate change, which means that choices for customers need to be simple, compelling and make financial sense. ESB’s investment in some of the latest technologies to support the transition to renewable energy is all taking place while it continues to expand its onshore and offshore wind portfolio. Simple, intuitive products and services that offer convenience, cost-savings and comfort will encourage customers to embrace change and take on a full and active role in the energy system. ESB is committed to helping customers navigate the changes ahead by developing customer-centric solutions that meet their needs. “Although ambitious, the transition to zero-carbon electricity and the electrification of society is achievable if we all play our part, but it requires an informed, engaged public that has the opportunity to deliver real change. That is where we come in, by enabling the latest innovation and technology to address the challenges we all face. By working collaboratively, we can effect fundamental social change and leave a really positive legacy for future generations as we transition to a renewable energy future,” says Peter O’Shea, Head of Corporate and Regulatory Affairs at ESB.

Find out how ESB’s renewable energy focus is creating a brighter future for all at esb.ie/brighter-future #esbbrighterfuture

The high-power charging hub is capable of providing 100km of charge in as little as six minutes.

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Developing Ireland’s hydrogen potential Ireland will require a different roadmap from that of its neighbouring countries given the absence of an industrial use for hydrogen, explains NUI Galway’s Rory Monaghan. While the development of hydrogen supply projects in Ireland is welcome, failure to incentivise the progression of demand will inevitably force delays in hydrogen production, explains Monaghan. The academic, who is a Senior Lecturer of Energy Systems Engineering and leads the Energy Research Centre in NUI Galway’s Ryan Institute, highlights that associated with the European Union’s move to make hydrogen a central part of its decarbonisation plans out to 2050, a number of member states have also published their hydrogen strategies in 2021 and there is a clear momentum across Europe. However, Monaghan stresses that throughout the majority of these strategies, the first step is for renewable hydrogen to replace fossil-generated (grey) hydrogen. “Research across Europe shows that

hydrogen is making its mark in the industrial sector, where grey hydrogen is already in use and where there is an existing demand,” he states. The challenge for Ireland is that, unlike its neighbouring countries, that industrial demand is minimal. Setting the context for the current momentum in hydrogen supply and demand across Europe, Monaghan is pleased that in a few short years the conversation has moved from explaining the potential uses of hydrogen to one of the specific challenges and opportunities for the role of hydrogen in Ireland’s future energy system. Hydrogen’s ability to be transported over long distances, its potential as a storage medium and the fact that it can be used in a range of different end-use sectors are clear benefits, however, as Monaghan points out, currently, most

potential end-use sectors are not using hydrogen and the vast bulk of hydrogen that is being used is as an industrial feedstock, and is not coming from renewables. In July 2020, the EU published its Energy System Integration Strategy, setting out four over-arching priorities of how the energy system will be decarbonised. Alongside efficiency, circularity and direct renewable electrification, the Strategy listed ‘clean fuels for hard to abate sectors’ as a priority, relating to hydrogen, biofuels and carbon capture and storage (CCS).

Hydrogen Strategy Subsequently, the EU Commission published its Hydrogen Strategy, mapping the development of 40GW worth of electrolysis capacity within the EU and a further 40GW in North Africa and the former Soviet Union (for import), by 2030.

Monaghan estimates that Europe needs to avoid future emissions of around one billion tonnes of CO2eq in 2050 in addition to its projected CO2 emissions reductions if it is to play its part in meeting the global aim of keeping warming to 1-2oC. Hydrogen can help close 50 per cent of that gap, spread across a number of key sectors including, but not limited to, transportation, as industrial feedstock and through industrial heat.

Falling equipment costs, the availability of cheap renewable power, strong government supports (especially in countries around the North Sea) for promoting hydrogen and existing largescale demand for grey hydrogen, are driving current momentum across Europe but many large-scale projects remain in the planning or construction phase, with the 6MW at Austria’s H2Future remaining as the world’s largest green hydrogen facility. Monaghan reemphasises that in many of the projects either operational or in construction across Europe, the demand is coming from industrial sectors, where there is an existing usage of grey hydrogen.

Ireland The International Energy Agency recently studied the prospects for hydrogen in north-western Europe, focusing on Ireland’s seven neighbouring countries. The study estimated consumption of a combined 6.3 million tonnes per year of hydrogen, almost all from natural gas and it is expected that green hydrogen will replace a large portion of this between 2025-2030. By comparison, Ireland currently consumes only 2,000 tonnes per year, roughly equivalent to full-year production from a 12MW electrolyser. “We are seeing a lot of development of hydrogen supply projects in Ireland but we are not seeing huge developments in hydrogen demand,” states Monaghan. “That is starting to change slightly, particularly in the transportation sector, with recent Bus Éireann and Dublin Bus fuel cell bus trials, but we do not currently have that base of industrial use of hydrogen that other EU

base of industrial use of hydrogen that other EU countries are relying on. Our roadmap is going to need to be different.” countries are relying on. Our roadmap is going to need to be different.” Posing the question as to how Ireland can increase the demand for hydrogen, Monaghan points to an initial need for this to be stimulated by government. Highlighting evidence of the formation of a ‘chicken and egg’ scenario, whereby supply projects will start to experience delays in getting off the ground without the availability of offtakers, Monaghan suggests a number of possibilities which could change this. The first is the co-funding for trial and purchase of hydrogen buses, trains and trucks, given the likelihood that transport is going to the Ireland’s first major mover in relation to green hydrogen adoption. Secondly, the academic says that co-funding for the deployment of hydrogen filling stations for these vehicles has been recognised as highly successful in Switzerland, especially in relation to HGVs, and such a model could be mirrored in Ireland. A further enabler, and one which has been adopted by the UK, is incentivising or co-funding of hydrogen hubs and valleys, clustering suppliers and users to reduce risk and driving economies of scale in the hydrogen value chain. Another approach in the UK, which could be transferable, is the inclusion of hydrogen in renewable transport fuel supports. Away from transport, Monaghan believes that future hydrogen development could benefit from a detailed analysis on the full system costs and emissions saving of heat decarbonisation in the built environment, with a pointed question of ‘what is the role of hydrogen in the residential gas grid?’. The Government has committed to the role out of some 600,000 heat pumps by 2030 but as Monaghan points out, it is not yet clear what role the gas grid,

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By 2024, there is an aim to have 6GW (similar to Ireland’s total maximum electrical demand) of renewable hydrogen electrolysers installed across the EU, and the production of up to one million tonnes of renewable hydrogen.

"We do not currently have that

potentially carrying hydrogen, has in this. The question of residential heating matters more in Ireland due to that sector’s outsized importance relative to other countries. “In its sixth Carbon Budget, the UK Climate Change Committee has found that the most cost-effective full decarbonisation route for residential heating is predominantly via heat pumps, but with an appreciable amount of hydrogen. This hydrogen provides the heating system with storage capacity that is harder to achieve to in all-electric scenario. Such an assessment has yet to be done in Ireland but I believe there are some important findings to be made,” he says. Concluding: “If we base our heat policy on completely pushing hydrogen to the side, we create the potential for a lot of inflexibility to be built into our energy system.” Monaghan is a co-leader of a recently announced three-year collaborative industry-academic project, HyLIGHT, which is seeking to inform a comprehensive plan for hydrogen deployment at scale in Ireland. HyLIGHT is co-funded by a consortium of 25 partner organisations organisations from across the emerging hydrogen value chain and Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) through MaREI, the SFI Research Centre for Energy, Climate and Marine. Dr Rory Monaghan is the Director of the Energy Systems Engineering Programme at NUI Galway, Energy Research Centre Lead in the NUI Galway Ryan Institute, and a Funded Investigator in MaREI, the SFI Research Centre for Energy Climate and Marine.

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The path to net-zero heating and cooling in Ireland The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland’s (SEAI) Head of Data and Insights, Jim Scheer, discusses the role of the organisation’s comprehensive National Heat Study in addressing the national challenge of decarbonising energy for heating and cooling. Decarbonising the energy used for heating and cooling is a very significant challenge facing Ireland in the coming decade. Heat energy currently accounts for 38 per cent of final energy consumption in Ireland with oil, gas and solid fuels still the primary sources. It causes over 14 MtCO2 emissions, or nearly a quarter of total national greenhouse gas emission annually. These must be at least halved by 2030, and eventually reach net zero.

Our high carbon, fossil fuel-based economy Almost 450,000 householders have upgraded their homes and thousands of businesses have made inroads on strategic energy management and technology change to renewables. Yet still net emission have risen by over one million tonnes (2 per cent per annum) over the last five years. We are still overly reliant on fossil fuels for heating, with less than 7 per cent of heat energy coming from renewable sources. From a policy perspective, we have entered the age of the accountant. Carbon budgets, or annual maxima of greenhouse gas emissions will soon be set here in Ireland, matching policy ambition to the science. The challenge is to reverse the annual growth in heat emissions to a net 7 per cent reduction or better, together with actions in other sectors. 30

A net-zero pathway for heat The upcoming SEAI National Heat Study will be the most comprehensive assessment of heating and cooling use in Ireland ever undertaken. It will provide detailed understanding of the sectors in which we use heat, the fuels we use to supply that heat and the solutions available to us to decarbonise our heat use. The study will include analysis of the costs of these solutions, provide insights as to how we can deliver them and how the transition may impact the people and businesses that use heat, namely, all of us. It will illustrate anticipated progress to 2030 and highlight areas where more work is needed to reach the relevant targets. Early insights are highlighting particularly challenging areas when it comes to decarbonising heating and cooling. The fact that heat use is deeply embedded in our daily lives, across all sectors, makes the challenge much more than simple technology transition.

Households and buildings Fossil fuels used to heat our homes cause 6.8 million tonnes of CO2 emissions annually, almost half of our heating related emissions. Oil boilers are still the most common central heating type in Ireland, heating around 700,000 homes. These cause 3.5 million tonnes of CO2 emissions

annually, which is over half of all CO2 emissions from home heating. This highlights the need for solutions in highcarbon one-off, rural dwellings. Around 1.5 million tonnes CO2 emissions arise from using coal and peat for home heating – just under a quarter of the whole sector. This is around the same level of emissions for heating in the entire commercial sector, making it a critical issue to address – made difficult perhaps by our historic ties to these fuels. Decarbonisation of all homes will require the eventual elimination of all oil boilers for home heating, the end of burning solid fuels like coal and peat for home heating and alternatives for fossil gas heated homes. And the faster the better. Whilst energy efficiency remains a top priority for the sector, revised estimates for district heating show greater potential. Latest estimates indicate that it is technically feasible for around half of heat demand in all buildings (residential, commercial and public) to be supplied by renewable and waste heat through district heating networks. Important considerations for early delivery of district heating include the development of a regulatory framework to support the emergence of this heat market. The upcoming study also gives deeper consideration to heat pumps for homes that are unlikely to ever be connected to a district heating network, for example

those still heated with oil. The study also looks at the longer-term potential for hydrogen and biogas. The solutions required provide examples of necessary infrastructure deployment to ultimately eliminate fossil fuel use. The associated activity will create significant jobs in the sector and highlights the need for skills development in energy efficiency construction, electrical and plumbing trades, and larger infrastructure establishment.

Annual heating emissions (thousand tonnes of CO2) in Industry, split by subsector and fuel

Industry

Around 70 large industrial sites within the EU emission trading scheme (ETS) account for approximately 87 per cent of the energy related CO2 emissions from the sector. Thus, fewer end-users in this sector hold the keys to large savings. Based on wide ranging consultation undertaken by SEAI, significant opportunities exist in some sectors to electrify processes – switching direct fossil fuel use to higher renewable electricity. Fuel switching to biomethane is also being considered to decarbonise some sectors, however resource availability, impacts on agricultural emissions, and feedstock sustainability are potential limiting factors.

Commercial and public sectors Commercial and public services are responsible for almost one fifth of heating related CO2 emissions, or 2.5 MtCO2, and three quarters of cooling related CO2 emissions, or 1.0 MtCO2 per year. The majority of emissions from direct fossil fuel use of oil and gas come from, hotels (25 per cent), healthcare (24 per cent), educational facilities (22 per cent), and restaurants / pubs (12 per cent). A further 0.67 MtCO2 results from electrically sourced heating and cooling across the commercial and public sectors. The particular challenges for the public sector will include eliminating oil use in Ireland’s schools and reducing emissions in healthcare, given the challenges of retrofitting whilst ensuring

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Industry has the second largest share of CO2 emissions from fuel used for heat, accounting for one third or 4.6 million tonnes CO2 per year. Emissions in the sector have been largely constant since 2009. 89 per cent of the energy used for heating in the sector is from fossil fuels. It will be important to electrify heating in many circumstances and to consider the potential for bioenergy, hydrogen, carbon capture use and storage (CCUS) and other options to eliminate carbon emissions.

Total annual emissions (ktCO2/annum) from fuel use for heating by Commercial and Public* subsector. (*Education, Healthcare and Office (public)

continuity and growth of services. In the commercial sector the incentives to improve buildings must impact a sector with high rates of leased assets and highly diverse business and construction types. Achieving decarbonisation in the sector will require end-to-end support models, availability of funding and Board level commitment. If action is not generated from within the sector, regulatory approaches will need to be prioritised to cause the necessary actions.

Beyond technology change With 85 per cent of energy for heat coming from fossil fuels, the need for massive technology change is clear. That alone will not be enough though. The path to net zero will have to be supported by parallel efforts to decarbonise the electricity grid, electrify heating demands, establish regulatory and market supports for district heating networks, for example. We will need to consider areas where we can sustain immediate emission reductions, like we did in transport over the Covid lockdown period. And we will need to look for alternatives to ‘highcarbon’ economy, where solutions to decarbonise in line with the net 7 per

cent reduction pathway can’t be found in specific sectors. All must play their part. A broader policy package is under development. Essential government supports in the form of grants, tax incentives and supports for financing are in the process of being re-designed to support more householders to get off fossil fuels, and a national campaign promoting the new supports for households to upgrade will get underway in early Autumn. New supports for business are being implemented (see www.seai.ie for the latest), among many other supporting actions, as further detailed in the Climate Action Plan. It is hoped that this multi-pronged approach, with government, businesses, individual householders, and communities working together will drive the societal change necessary.

SEAI will be publishing a series of technical reports and a final concluding report that brings it all together, with all reports expected to be released before the end of the year. Stay tuned to www.seai.ie for details.

Living within carbon budgets renewable energy magazine

gives us a chance of making Ireland’s fair contribution to the Paris Agreement. But achieving the goal, every year, will require a truly national effort, elevating climate action to our number one priority. To succeed, climate action needs to move from something we do to fundamentally how we do things.

Upcoming carbon budgets are going to change the game when it comes to eliminating fossil fuels from our energy system, explains Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) Chief Executive William Walsh. We have worked for many years at SEAI with householders, business, and large industry to promote the benefits of sustainable energy. The Government has to date supported almost 450,000 households and thousands of businesses to reduce or replace fossil fuel usage. The Government has supported a world leading level of renewables on our electricity grid and done much to support sustainable energy research. Unfortunately, it hasn’t been enough. Aside from the impact of Covid in 2020, net emissions from energy use continue to rise. SEAI welcomes the alignment of targets with the science. A minimum 7 per cent per annum net reduction of emissions 32

The technology change required is massive. We need a 10-fold increase in the rate and depth of building energy upgrades across residential and nonresidential buildings. We need to ramp up electric vehicle ownership. And we need to deploy renewable electricity on our grid at around four times the historic rates. Unfortunately, given delayed climate action to date, and our reliance on imported fossil fuels for our energy needs (87 per cent fossil in 2020), even this level of scaling up won’t be enough on its own. In a carbon budget constrained economy, a range of further considerations are necessary. First, we must consider where we can reduce our fossil fuel use immediately. Lessons exist in our recent experience with the Covid pandemic. Transport emissions dipped by around four million tonnes in 2020 due to reduced travel. This was unwelcomed for many given its link to unemployment. But for others working from home or taking less overseas flights worked well, and reduced emissions. We need to address the likely increase in home heating. But this remains a case in point of the need to cut net emissions, fast. Investment in cycling and walking infrastructure during the car transport lull offer a strong example of providing alternatives to fossil fuel-based car travel that have ‘stuck’ for many consumers, representing the type of behaviour change to be encouraged. So many of the changes bring us closer to meeting our climate challenge, while bringing added health and lifestyle benefits. We must talk too of energy sufficiency. Where efficiency is doing the same activity with less energy, sufficiency is simply about doing less. This is a more difficult discussion. But when carbon budgets bite, we may have to consider

everyday changes such as how often to use the washing machine day, or where can we use less hot water. Scaling successful projects quickly is something that SEAI has done for many years. Most of our government funded schemes started as trials. We now have comprehensive offerings supporting hundreds of communities around the country to act together. We host business networks sharing experience and ‘wins’ on energy efficiency and renewables. We have witnessed the power of CEO leadership in business who are tackling the issue seriously – hitting business goals and decarbonising simultaneously. More of this cooperation is essential. Beyond these actions, we need to consider what ‘high carbon economy’ can we substitute out. For example, could we build more with timber and less with cement. With carbon budgets, it doesn’t work to simply make the least carbon intense product of either A or B. The net emission from making or using that product are what count. Company responsibility must be taken at the net emission level. That may mean finding alternatives until such time as high carbon sectors can produce in a way that is compatible with carbon budgets, climate science and a healthy future for next generations. All activity in our energy transition is in the good economy, providing thousands of jobs. Any business looking for solutions will need support. Any citizen keen to act needs support. We are inviting all interested parties to contact SEAI as a first port of call on action to eliminate fossil fuels from our energy system. Nothing short of a societal movement will see us living within carbon budgets, living lives that are compatible with our planet. We are here to help.

T: +353 01 8082 100 E: info@seai.ie W: www.seai.ie

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Credit: Science in HD

70 by 30: Renewable electricity project pipeline Northern Ireland has the potential to almost double its renewable electricity generation in the coming years based on projects already in the development pipeline but the majority of generation capacity is still awaiting construction.

The speed at which renewable electricity generation projects in Northern Ireland pass through the pipeline is significant when considering the Department for the Economy’s ambitious target of 70 per cent electricity generation from renewables by 2030.

where a site has already had planning permission accepted. To offer a context to what the scale of future permitted generation might look like, the 165MW of generation under construction is made up of five sites, ranging in technologies from onshore wind, energy from waste and battery storage.

Northern Ireland has a potential renewable electricity pipeline capacity of over 1,208MW, including battery storage, according to the UK’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) database but only 165MW of that capacity had commenced construction by June 2020.

According to SONI, Northern Ireland has a maximum export capacity of 3,031MW, around 40 per cent of which is installed across renewable electricity sites. Northern Ireland’s two large scale renewable sites are connected to the transmission system, with remaining renewable sites connected to the distribution network.

By comparison, 509MW of generation was awaiting the construction phase,

NIE Networks puts connected generation of renewable technologies at

1,684MW, the majority of which (76 per cent) comes from onshore wind, with solar PV (268MW) a distant second. An insight into the length of time it can take a project to progress through the pipeline from seeking planning approval to eventual generation can be seen by looking at the year 2017, recorded as the largest increase in additional capacity in any given year. Sites commissioned in 2017 generally started construction at least two years prior to generation and some sites’ planning approval dated back to 2007. This means that even the 165MW of generation sites under construction will likely not feed into Northern Ireland’s renewable generation for a number of years. Additionally, the Department for

the Economy has flagged that of the potential 509MW generation on consented sites which have not begun construction, delay of a further two years would see 212MW of capacity lost due to planning permission timeframes, 17.5 per cent of potential capacity in Northern Ireland’s renewable electricity pipeline.

Looking to the pipeline, Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council has the largest value of capacity with consented planning permission (141MW), followed closely by Fermanagh and Omagh District Council (129MW). Mid Ulster District Council has significant potential, as it represents 42 per cent of total planning applications currently in the system.

17.5% 212MW of a 1,208MW total pipeline will potentially be lost if construction is stalled for another two years due to planning permission timeframes

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In terms of location, the majority of Northern Ireland’s current operational capacity is located in the North West, with County Tyrone contributing the largest installed renewable capacity at around 553MW. The majority of this capacity comes from onshore wind and that technology is set to continue to dominate future renewable generation. However, analysis of those sites in the construction phases shows the emergence of greater levels of alternative technologies. A combined 102MW of solar PV generation at three sites is awaiting construction, while planning permission has been granted for Northern Ireland’s largest (39.5MW) solar PV site in County Antrim. Additionally, four storage facilities, with around 184MW of storage potential, exist in the renewable electricity project pipeline. Pipeline capacity includes one marine energy technology. Fair Head tidal site is currently in the planning system for a 100MW development.

Potential pipeline capacity (MW) Total pipeline

1208

Application submitted

533

Awaiting construction

509

Under construction

165 BEIS Renewable Energy Planning Database

*Information taken from the Department for the Economy’s Renewable Electricity Pipeline for Northern Ireland report. Information was correct at September 2020, however the status of some projects may have changed.

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Decarbonisation beyond renewable targets

Green hydrogen is one of the technologies that is predicted to make a major contribution to decarbonising the power sector

The acceleration of the decarbonisation of Ireland’s energy system presents not only environmental benefits but could stimulate economic activity to underpin future growth, writes Tomás Murray, KPMG Ireland’s Corporate Finance Director. Ireland has set an ambitious target that 70 per cent of all electricity required in the country is to be provided from renewable sources by 2030. The move towards renewable electricity comes at a time when the demand for electricity is set to rise, as a result of the electrification of heat and transport and the emergence of Ireland as an attractive location for data centres targeting a global market. There was strong interest from renewables developers in last year’s RESS auctions and the draft Maritime Area Planning Bill paves the way for an offshore wind industry of scale, so there are many indicators to suggest Ireland is making progress towards this target. The primary policy objective of this renewable target is the decarbonisation of Ireland’s power generation industry in line with the country’s climate change mitigation programme, though renewable energy has other environmental benefits over thermal generation such as coal, which emits a range of harmful 36

pollutants such as NOX and SO2 into the atmosphere. Since renewable generators are not dependent on fuel they also provide a measure of energy security for a country that does not have significant fossil fuel reserves.

Challenges of variable output Despite the many benefits of renewable energy, the predominant technologies (solar and wind) are dependent upon the prevailing weather, and their output, while increasingly predictable, is not constant. Before the end of the decade, offshore wind projects are expected to reach load factors of 50 per cent, but that still leaves a 50 per cent shortfall. The output of wind and solar generation in Ireland is negatively correlated so the portfolio effect of combining these technologies mitigates some of the inherent variability; this alone is insufficient to meet the needs of customers that have come to expect

uninterrupted access to power, as and when they require it. ‘Dunkelflaute’ is a composite word in the German tradition, stemming from ‘dunkelheit’ (darkness) and ‘windflaute’ (calm wind), referring to sustained periods where the weather is both calm and dark. During hours of low solar and wind, the system’s demand is met primarily through the combustion of natural gas and coal. Ultimately, Ireland has a target to be net zero in terms of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and this will inevitably mean a fully decarbonised power system. The stability of the system as it is currently configured cannot rely upon wind and solar alone and while there is widespread support for the 70 per cent renewable electricity targets (and rightly so), there is an emerging discussion regarding both the decarbonised technologies and policies required to bridge the gap.

Technologies Battery

The search for low cost and long duration batteries is well underway. Form-Energy is a venture-backed research company based in Boston that has developed what they refer to as an ‘iron-air’ battery system, optimised to store power for up to five-days at relatively low cost. While developments such as this are promising, they have yet to reach commercial viability, so the application of batteries is likely to remain limited to short-term balancing for the next decade or so at least.

Green hydrogen The term ‘green hydrogen’ refers to the production of H2 through the electrolysis of water which is powered by renewable energy. Green hydrogen is gaining traction in the UK and across Europe as an energy vector with the potential to displace natural gas in conventional applications. Green hydrogen is increasingly seen as a means to generate high temperature heat for large industrial processes, hence significant research is being carried out in countries with large manufacturing bases. There are already demonstration projects being developed using modified gas engines designed to run on hydrogen. In the near-term, cost is likely to be a barrier. Research carried out by MaREI as part of the EirWind project estimated that production costs of €150/MWh are possible for a large-scale electrolyser coupled with a windfarm, which is approximately three times the current cost of natural gas (140p/therm).

CCUS Carbon Capture and Underground Storage (CCUS) is the process of combusting a fossil fuel and gathering

Figures shared by the project sponsors indicate that a storage cost in excess of $80/tonne could be required to make the project viable. The International Energy Agency has estimated that the cost of capturing CO2 could range from $4080/tonne in power generation applications. The combined costs suggest that commercial viability for decarbonised power through CCUS would require carbon prices in excess of €100-135/tonne, which is certainly higher than the current €60/tonne prices seen today, though not unimaginable.

Nuclear power A somewhat more familiar, though radical, technology option is nuclear. The French power system has a significant installed base of nuclear generation. This is the reason that despite renewables providing only 20 per cent of electricity, the carbon intensity of the power grid is approximately one-sixth of the carbon intensity of the Irish system. Despite much promise however, nuclear power has not seen any appreciable reduction in costs over recent decades and safety concerns linger. Hinkley C, the first new nuclear project to be commissioned in the UK in decades, will receive a governmentguaranteed price of £106/MWh for 25years. The UK Government concluded that the contract represented good value, although it should not automatically be assumed that the costs would be the same in an Irish context, where this price would be expensive but not outlandish. Nuclear plants, however, require economies of scale and a 3.6GW project (such as Hinkley C), while providing helpful generation capacity would pose a significant single-point-of-failure risk to the Irish system if it were required to shut down at short notice. Furthermore, Ireland currently lacks the institutional infrastructure necessary to oversee the safe operation of such an industry and the costs of creating this would be significant. That said, while it is far from

certain that nuclear is the best option for decarbonising Ireland’s power supply, it is worthy of debate and being included in the range of options being considered to support Ireland’s response to the climate challenge.

Policy changes While there are many uncertainties regarding the optimal technology mix to counter-balance the inherent variability of renewable energy, the picture is becoming clearer in other respects. The cost to the system of providing power, particularly carbon-free power at times when renewables are unavailable, is going to be significantly more expensive. While the wholesale electricity market price may reflect this cost, this is only a portion of the overall cost paid by both residential and commercial customers. There is significant scope to reshape other charges (such as capacity charges) to better reflect the true costs. Furthermore, an emerging category of load (hydrogen electrolysers, electric cars and heat pumps) is exceptionally well-suited to responding intelligently to price signals. Transmission and distribution charges, as currently configured, give very limited scarcity signals—reform of these mechanisms and a move towards a more dynamic model would ultimately lower the cost for all consumers, particularly as grid capacity becomes strained.

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Lithium-Ion battery (also seen in mobile phones and electric cars) is the most commonly deployed energy storage technology on power systems today. Bloomberg Green report that 3,500MW were deployed by utilities across the globe in 2020 and that figure is expected to treble by 2023. Growth in battery demand is a consequence of falling costs and the system’s increasing need for energy sources that can be called upon at short notice. Typically, these installations hold a store of energy that can last for 0.5 to four hours; this makes them highly effective at smoothing within-day variations, but insufficient to meet the requirements of a Dunkelflaute event.

the associated GHG emissions before they enter the atmosphere. The captured emissions are then pumped into an underground location. This technology has been researched for a number of years but there is a shortage of precedent projects. The Northern Lights is a carbon capture and storage project off the coast of Norway backed by Equinor, Shell, and Total and it is projected to be capable of accepting 1.5 million tonnes of CO2 per annum.

Opportunity for Ireland There is a chance for Ireland to develop an integrated energy policy that seeks to accelerate the journey towards a fully decarbonised power supply, not just the periods when renewable power is available. Full and rapid decarbonisation is fully consistent with a 70 per cent renewable energy target by 2030 and critically, it is consistent with continued economic development and not a reductive choice between growth and the environment. Planning the full decarbonisation of the power system needs careful consideration of all options, but the ultimate prize is an energy system that is both exemplary from an environmental perspective and attractive to the economic activity that can underpin future growth.

E: tomas.murray@kpmg.ie W: www.kpmg.ie

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Heating and cooling in Ireland As Ireland progresses in its pursuit of a 34.1 per cent renewable energy goal by 2030 in order to contribute to the EU’s goal of 32 per cent by 2030, the SEAI illustrates the state of cooling and heating in the country, and the potential for efficiency in this area. The vast majority of energy used for heating in Ireland is consumed by the residential and industry sectors, which, combined, account for a useful heating demand that constitutes 79 per cent of the total for all sectors in Ireland. In comparison, useful heating demand for the agriculture sector accounts for just 1 per cent. The total final energy consumption for the year 2019, per sector, was found to be: 26.32 TWh in the residential sector; 5.87 TWh in the commercial sector; 4.18 TWh in the public sector; 22.48 TWh in the industrial sector; and 0.79 TWh in the agricultural sector. In the residential sector, heating is supplied by solid fuels, oil, gas, or electricity. Final energy consumption for 2019 shows oil (16.04 TWh) to have been the dominant fuel in Irish homes, with electricity (1.11 TWh) the least used. Gas boilers (2.51 TWh) represented the most used option in the commercial sector, with electric heating (1.88 TWh) and oil boilers (1.49 TWh) behind. In terms of cooling, energy consumption is split across industry, agriculture, commercial, and public sectors, as there is no measurable cooling demand for the residential sector given that no cooling degree days requiring active cooling have been recorded in Ireland in recent years. Data centres are also included in the stats, with cooling demand figure for the centres “based on the assumption that one kWh of electricity consumption generates one kWh of waste heat within data centres, hence the annual data centre cooling demand is modelled to be equal to the annual data centre electricity consumption”. This approach “assumes that the heat gains from the environment (e.g., from incoming solar radiation) are negligible compared to the waste heat generated within data centres” and also “assumes negligible passive cooling, which in reality will likely be used to meet a significant amount of the cooling demand”.

38%

of all energy consumption in Ireland is used for heat

35%

of annual energy emissions come from heat

94%

of energy for heat still comes from fossil fuels

Total final energy consumption (TWh) for heating and cooling in buildings and industry by sector, 2019 30 25 20

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10 5 0 Residential

Commercial

Public Heating

Industry

Agriculture

Data centres

Cooling

The vast majority of cooling demand in Ireland comes from the commercial sector, which accounts for 63 per cent of total demand. Total final energy consumption for cooling in 2019 stands at: 2.87 TWh in the commercial sector; 0.22 TWh in the public sector; 0.80 in the industrial sector; 0.09 in the agricultural sector; and 0.30 TWh in the data centres. With demands from new builds included, the SEAI’s heating demand forecasts show no sign of lessening demand between 2020 and 2050, even during its decarbonisation scenario of forecasting, with every year projected to be between 40 and 50 TWh over the 30-year stretch. Heating fuel final consumption forecasts in the decarbonisation scenario to 2050 (not including new builds) show levels dropping from 50 TWh in 2020 to just over 30 TWh in 2050. The only sector in which cooling demands are projected to increase is data centres. “As a by-product of the data management processes that occur within data centres, large amounts of low-grade excess heat are generated. Because of this, and due to improved data centre operation at low temperatures, up to 40 per cent of a data centre’s total electricity consumption can be on cooling, depending on the efficiency of the data centre’s servers and cooling method,” the SEAI states. Electricity demand from data centres is projected to grow from 2 TWh per annum in 2019 to 12 TWh per annum in 2050. In October 2020, the European Commission’s climate ambition was raised to a 55 per cent cut in emissions by 2030, envisioning climate neutrality by 2050. The 2020 Programme for Government commits to an average 7 per cent per year reduction in overall greenhouse gas emissions from 2021 to 2030, which will result in a 51 per cent reduction over the decade if successful, and to achieving net zero emissions by 2050. In 2021, the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021 established a national climate objective, committing Ireland to a “climate resilient, biodiversity rich, environmentally sustainable and climate neutral economy” by 2050. To achieve this goal, the heating and cooling sector of energy has seven major objectives and targets broadly aimed at decarbonisation, energy efficiency and energy security, as they are included in the National Energy and Climate Plan: the retrofitting of 500,000 residential hoes to a B2 Building Energy Rating (BER) or “cost optimal” by 2030; the installation of 600,000 heat pumps in the residential sector from 2021-2030; all public sector buildings are to have a B BER or carbon equivalent by 2030; one-third of all commercial buildings are to have a B BER or carbon equivalent by 2030; an additional 1,600 GWh of renewable heat will be generated via the Support Scheme for Renewable Heat, heat pump grants and the EXEED programme; 1.6 TWh of indigenous biomethane will be generated by 2030; and additional district heating of 0.12 TWh will grow linearly from 2023-2028 through the development of a national policy framework for district heating.

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The gas network: Ireland’s renewablesready decarbonisation solution decarbonise Ireland’s economy. Gas Networks Ireland is working to make this possible.

Gas Networks Ireland’s vision for renewables Transitioning to a clean energy economy by 2050 requires a balance between sustainability, security and affordability. Leveraging existing energy assets and capabilities will enable Ireland to reach its targets more effectively.

The national gas network is the cornerstone of Ireland’s energy system, safely and securely powering 31 per cent of Ireland’s primary energy needs, including 40 per cent of the country’s heating and 52 per cent of its electricity generation in 2020. When the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine, the national gas network is there to ensure the lights stay on and our devices are powered. At times, gas supplied as much as 85 per cent of the country’s electricity, with essential services and health facilities relying on the security of gas-generated electricity. Gas is also particularly important for many Irish industries, delivering the high intensity heat that many processes require. Businesses know they can depend on the gas network’s reliability and flexibility. With significantly less CO2 than coal and oil, natural gas has played an important role in reducing Ireland’s energy emissions since the 1970s, and gas will continue to play an integral role in the country’s transition to a low carbon economy. 40

However, while natural gas is the cleanest conventional fuel, Ireland must transition to more sustainable alternatives to meet its climate action targets.

Gas Networks Ireland’s vision is for Ireland to replace natural gas with renewable gases, such as biomethane and hydrogen, to substantially reduce the country’s carbon emissions while complementing intermittent renewable electricity and ensuring a secure energy supply. By delivering a net-zero carbon gas network by 2050, Ireland can reduce emissions across a number of key sectors, including those that are traditionally difficult to decarbonise, such as transport, agriculture, industry, heating and power generation. The national gas network is ready to play its role a delivering a cleaner energy future.

Biomethane: Today’s renewable gas

With more than 706,000 customers and growing, Gas Networks Ireland’s ambition is for a net-zero carbon gas network by 2050 and to support emissions reductions across every sector of the Irish economy, in the least cost, least disruptive, safe and secure manner.

A carbon-neutral renewable gas made from farm and food waste through a process known as anaerobic digestion, biomethane can seamlessly replace natural gas on the network today and is fully compatible with existing appliances, technologies and vehicles.

Ireland’s €2.7 billion, 14,617km national gas network is considered one of the safest and most modern renewablesready gas networks in the world. New technologies, such as compressed natural gas (CNG), and renewable gases such as biomethane and hydrogen, can all play a part in helping

In countries around Europe, including the UK, Italy, France and Germany, biomethane is playing an important role in decarbonising sectors such as heat and transport. The European Commission identified Ireland as having the greatest potential per capita for the deployment of biomethane.

Hydrogen is a carbon free, flammable gas, which can be made from renewable electricity, such as offshore wind, and stored until needed, making it an attractive option to decarbonise Ireland’s energy system while also enhancing energy security and diversity.

Gas Networks Ireland introduced domestically produced biomethane into the national network in 2019, via the country’s first dedicated renewable gas injection point in Cush, County Kildare. A second renewable gas injection facility in Mitchelstown was recently approved by Cork County Council. Together they have the capacity to heat 75,000 homes, while also supporting the decarbonisation of local agriculture.

Converting renewable electricity into hydrogen is a strong example of how greater integration between Ireland’s gas and electricity networks can support a low carbon economy.

A domestic biomethane industry would also provide significant opportunities for local communities from the sale of biomethane, feedstock used to produce the renewable gas, and a bio-fertiliser that is a by-product of the process, and facilitate sustainable circular economies, with businesses powering their operations via renewable gas made from their own waste. The National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP) has proposed an initial target of 1.6 TWh/yr of biomethane production by 2030 (which equates to circa 3 per cent

Hydrogen is a critical component of the European ‘Green Deal’ and is recognised by the European Commission as offering “a solution to decarbonise industrial processes and economic sectors where reducing carbon emissions is both urgent and hard to achieve”. While there is currently no hydrogen on Ireland’s gas network, blends of up to 20 per cent could be transported in Ireland’s existing infrastructure with natural gas and biomethane, and used in existing appliances, technology and vehicles, with minimal disruption and upfront cost to customers. Transporting pure 100 per cent hydrogen would require some modifications. To ensure that the existing gas network is capable of safely transporting and

Pictured at the opening of Ireland’s fourth publicly accessible CNG refuelling station at Circle K’s forecourt on the Ballysimon Road in Limerick were Brian Connolly, Senior Pricing Manager Circle K; Jonathan Diver, Senior Fuels Director, Circle K; and Damien Corr, Project Manager, Gas Networks Ireland

of gas on the network). This target will be reviewed in 2023 and Gas Networks Ireland believes there is significant scope for biomethane production above the 1.6 TWh/yr target.

storing hydrogen, Gas Networks Ireland is developing a Hydrogen Innovation Centre in West Dublin which will allow pipelines, meters and appliances to be tested for use with a variety of blends up to and including 100 per cent hydrogen.

Hydrogen: The renewable gas of the future

Renewable gas in transport

While biomethane offers immediate emissions reductions across the economy and importantly agriculture, hydrogen is essential to meeting Ireland’s long-term climate action ambitions.

Transport currently accounts for 42 per cent of Ireland’s energy use, making it the country’s largest source of energy demand, and one of the most difficult sectors to decarbonise. In particular, heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) and buses

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Within both the EU’s Farm to Fork Strategy and Irish agri-food industry, the development of biomethane and the production of a nutrient rich bio-fertiliser digestate, which is a by-product of anaerobic digestion, is seen as a key element in decarbonising agriculture.

generate 30 per cent of road transport emissions despite accounting for just 4 per cent of vehicles on Irish roads. Studies show that switching from diesel to CNG can reduce well-to-wheel CO2 emissions by up to 23 per cent compared to diesel (CENEX, 2019) and nitrous oxide (NOx) by up to 50 per cent (UK Department of Transport, 2018). Furthermore, as biomethane and hydrogen blends are compatible with existing CNG vehicles, as the volume of renewable gas on the network increases, vehicles refuelling from the national gas network will increasingly reduce their carbon footprint without changing a thing. Hauliers wanting to achieve complete carbon neutrality sooner will also be able to purchase certified renewable gas for their fleet, and the extension of the existing Biofuel Obligation Scheme to include CNG will also drive reductions in transport emissions. A proven, affordable and reliable alternative to diesel, Ireland’s CNG vehicle numbers grew more than 50 per cent in 2020 as the number worldwide surpassed 28 million — two million in Europe. Gas Networks Ireland is developing a national CNG refuelling network in partnership with Ireland's forecourt operators and hauliers. There are currently three private stations and four public stations in operation along prominent haulier routes around Dublin, Limerick and Tipperary, with another under construction in Cavan and a further eight in planning and development around the country.

T: 021 453 4000 E: renewablegas@gasnetworks.ie W: www.gasnetworks.ie

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Delivering an Energy Strategy Ahead of the publication of Northern Ireland’s Energy Strategy later in 2021, David Whelan speaks to the Department for the Economy’s (DfE) Director for Energy Strategy, Thomas Byrne. In July 2021, the window for response to the policy options consultation paper for the new Energy Strategy closed, bringing Northern Ireland one step closer to a new vision for energy in the wider context of global decarbonisation. The Strategy and, potentially more critically, its associated action plan, have been scheduled for publication before the end of the year, with the Department currently working through the range of responses it received during the consultation. Byrne, who has led the development of the Strategy and various stakeholder and consumer outreach initiatives in recent years, is pleased with the levels of engagement, highlighting the almost 8,000 views recorded on the consultation page, as well as nearly 4,000 downloads of the document and 282 responses, over a three-month period. Tellingly, given the emphasis that Byrne and his team have placed on ensuring the consultation captured as broad a

base as possible, around 50 per cent of responses came directly from domestic and business consumers. With the Department now working through those responses to inform the Strategy and its relevant policies, Byrne is confident that its delivery and that of the associated action plan remains on track, despite the impact of the pandemic. In fact, the Director believes that the past two years of the pandemic has placed a greater onus on the importance of the Strategy, as well as increasing interest in it. “The Strategy has always been an important piece of policy, but I believe its reach across society is broader now than ever before,” he says. “Firstly, because the awareness of the impact of climate change and the need to take action is higher. The Strategy covers around two-thirds of emissions here in Northern Ireland and I think that puts a lot of strategic focus on what we are doing.

“Secondly, the impact of the pandemic means that we are trying to rebuild an economy that can be sustainable for the long-term. One of our guiding principles is for the growth of a green economy, the success of which will be founded on our net-zero ambitions.” Byrne points out that ambitions for green growth features in a breadth of fresh government policies, ranging from the draft Programme for Government outcomes through to DfE’s 10X economic vision and Economic Recovery Action Plan; areas where energy policy may not have traditionally featured but is now playing a central role.

Action plan Outlining what is set to be unveiled, Byrne describes the Strategy as a “high-level strategic look at the direction of travel, focused on the period up to 2030, as part of the longer journey to 2050”. However, he is also aware of stakeholder demand for delivery and to this end, he points to

the action plan, which he describes as establishing the “short-term immediate measures which we want to take”. The Energy Strategy Director emphasises the likelihood of an annual review process to be built into the action plan, which in turn will enable the Strategy to be updated as new evidence becomes available.

Energy target Interestingly, Northern Ireland’s Energy Strategy is likely to emerge before the region’s climate targets are established in law. Northern Ireland, as the only region of the UK without its own climate legislation, is in the unique position of having two separate climate bills progressing through the Assembly. Byrne is quick to point out that the outcome of climate legislation is unlikely to impact the net-zero ambitions being pursued in relation to energy, although the timescales to achieving this goal may differ. “Our direction is net-zero carbon for energy, which is in line with the CCC advice and indeed, both bills coming forward in the Assembly.” The policy options paper identified five principles for the new Energy Strategy. These are: •

placing you at the heart of our energy future;

•

growing a green economy;

•

doing more with less;

•

replacing fossil fuels with indigenous renewables; and

•

creating a flexible and integrated energy system.

Byrne confirms the assumption that a consumer-centred approach was intentionally marked as the first principle, highlighting that while the Energy Strategy can be a major enabler of Northern Ireland’s energy transition, consumers will essentially dictate the scale of the transition. “We cannot reach our vision of reaching

net zero carbon and affordable energy without consumers and people at the heart,” he states. “Only part of this transition will be about technology, and it is ultimately going to be decisions by people and consumers that define success, whether that is around investing in buildings, or the energy they use for heating systems or transport. “That is why a big part of our work is around ensuring that they have both the knowledge and buy-in to signal the decisions that will be needed in the future.”

Pre-strategy The Director emphasises a point made in the policy options paper that the Department will not wait for the publication of the new Strategy to progress urgent issues. The Department’s recently announced Economic Recovery Action Plan included £20 million of green recovery intervention. Byrne says that he and his team have been keen to offer clear signals to the renewables industry around their intentions, highlighting the need to kickstart projects and investments, where possible, ahead of the Strategy’s publication. He points to former Economy Minister Diane Dodds MLA’s announcement in 2020 that any new target in the Energy Strategy would not be below 70 per cent renewable electricity by 2030, as a good example of how the Department has sought to offer direction to industry prior to the Strategy’s consultation. Similarly, and more recently, Byrne says that the £5 million allocation of funding to NI Water to trial electrolyser

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“Something we have heard loud and clear from stakeholders is that while they are pleased with the work we are doing on the Strategy, our energy transition is also about delivery, and they want to have confidence in what we are planning to do. That is the reason behind our development of a high-level strategic vision, complimented by a more detailed action plan.”

“Support is an important part of the conversation, but it is only one facet. Behavioural change and changes to regulations and standards will be vital to driving as well. Ultimately, it is about finding the cleverest and most costeffective way of meeting our objectives.”

technology for the production of hydrogen and oxygen, alongside key statements on the opportunities presented by the development of a hydrogen economy for Northern Ireland, has been welcomed. Asked what he identifies as the areas of maximum opportunity when the Strategy is published, Byrne is quick to point out that some technologies being discussed today are still between 10 and 15 years away from being scalable. To this end, he points to two areas he believes can have a massive impact in the short term: energy efficiency and renewable electricity. “Energy efficiency has to be at the heart the Energy Strategy. It is not just about decarbonising energy; it is also about reducing the amount we use. That is why one of our principles is about doing more with less. We want to have a really strong strategic focus on driving energy efficiency. It is a no-brainer and something we must do no matter what the technologies are.” On renewable electricity, he adds: “We have already had significant success in meeting our renewable electricity targets. We have excellent wind resources and the technologies in this area are generally well-established and proven and so, giving that signal to industry and putting in place the mechanisms we need to bring forward investment in these two areas is something we will look to do at the earliest opportunity.” Byrne says that an early focus on these two areas will allow for Northern Ireland to position itself well for technologies of the future, but also ensure that the region is not reliant on them. “When we do publish the Strategy later

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“We have developed the consultation on the basis of all departments working together to produce the Strategy, with it coming forward as an Executive document. That gives it the wide renewable energy magazine

political cover and support in terms of what we want to do.” this year, you will see that focus on low and ‘no regret’ technologies which we know will work, alongside a continuation to move forward on those more uncertain technologies of the future.”

Affordability Key to any strategic vision for what technologies will take Northern Ireland to net-zero carbon is affordability for consumers. Byrne says that inclusion of affordability upfront in the Strategy’s vision is key, highlighting that the transition is not only about enabling consumer participation in energy but also about consumer protection, particularly those viewed as the most vulnerable. “The CCC’s long-term view is that investment in renewable technologies will lead to a system that is cheaper in the long term. However, that is going to take time to get to that point and one of the key strategic questions, not just for Northern Ireland but for every government trying to reach decarbonisation targets, is where do we target that investment? What are the most cost-effective routes? And ultimately, who pays?” To this end, Byrne points to a focus on energy efficiency as something that will have a tangible impact on reducing consumer bills. Additionally, he believes that economic benefits will be made through a strategic focus on Northern Ireland’s indigenous energy sources, and a move away from importing fossil fuels. “It is not that indigenous renewables are necessarily cheaper than fossil fuels but our reliance on importing fossil fuels means that consumers remain at the mercy of international markets. Taking

control through use of our own natural resources and investing in technologies to support that will mean that any investment we make will be retained within the Northern Ireland economy.”

Flexibility Although the Department is set to deliver a strategic vision, Byrne is keen to acknowledge the levels of flexibility built into the strategy. The Director says that the “living, breathing document” will undoubtedly need revisited and updated, most likely on an annual basis.

Supports A key question being asked by stakeholders concerns the form of supports coming forward to facilitate behavioural change. Byrne stresses that the initial strategy is about establishing what Northern Ireland hopes to achieve and what technologies it can progress, which can then be followed by supports as mechanisms to deliver on that vision. However, he points to green innovation, bringing forward low-carbon technologies to be developed in Northern Ireland to support a green economy, as one area of focus. Additionally, he says that the expansion of the Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme, being utilised in Great Britain, is under consideration for supporting renewable electricity in Northern Ireland. Finally, he points ongoing consideration of how consumers can be best supported to invest in their own buildings and, in particular, tailoring that support to who needs it most. However, Byrne concedes that as we look to less-established technologies, such as heat pumps and decarbonised gas, there is still work to be done

around cost and what supports will be needed to encourage consumer and industry investment. “Support is an important part of the conversation, but it is only one facet. Behavioural change and changes to regulations and standards will be vital to driving as well. Ultimately, it is about finding the cleverest and most costeffective way of meeting our objectives. “We want to use the Strategy as the starting point of a range of consultations and engagements so we meet those objectives and I imagine supports will be a part of most of those conversations,” says Byrne. The Director acknowledges that the regulatory regime in Northern Ireland must be right for new technologies to emerge. He is pleased that the Utility Regulator and the Consumer Council have been closely involved in the development of the Strategy, ensuring that consumers’ interests are at its heart.

Cost Concluding on whether he feels that the Strategy will be allocated the necessary funding to fulfil its ambition in an economic climate of pressurised departmental budgets, Byrne points to an intention for the Strategy to be an Executive document, rather than owned solely by one department. “The fact is that energy policy is spread across multiple departments,” he states, adding: “We have developed the consultation on the basis of all the departments working together to produce the Strategy, with it coming forward as an Executive document. That gives it the wide political cover and support in terms of what we want to do. “However, while there is an obvious role for government, it is also worth noting that the private sector will have a big role in this as well. We need to continue the conversations around how we best stimulate the private sector to make these investments.” Byrne does not have a firmer target date than the suggested publication of the Strategy before the end of the year, however, he does state that the Department will look at any opportunities to publish the strategy sooner. COP26, set to be held in Glasgow in early November 2021, represents an opportunity for Northern Ireland to announce its vision for energy.

Digitalisation of the energy sector: The future is smart!

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Increased digitalisation of the energy system will bring new cyber security threats and require proper countermeasures to be in place. Risks are expected to arise in the transition from older technologies in legacy control systems designed when cybersecurity was not part of the technical specifications for the system, potentially leading to safety issues and even blackouts. We expect the Northern Ireland Energy Strategy, due to be published by the Department for the Economy (DfE) by the end of 2021 to address many of the same challenges. DfE has said that energy users are of central importance to the future strategy and its digital transition aims to enable and protect energy consumers. DfE has vowed to create a flexible and integrated energy system to provide value for consumers and enhance energy security.

In the past decade we have seen a number of industries revolutionised by the digitalisation of their data, processes and operations. Banking, transport, healthcare, and entertainment sectors have embraced the digital era and interest is now focused on the digitalisation of the energy sector, writes Le-ann Campbell, Associate Solicitor, Carson McDowell. There is wide consensus that digitalisation will play an essential role in achieving the net zero targets set by many of the world’s leading economies. However, there is considerable doubt around how it will be achieved and fears that governments and industry are not moving quickly enough to establish the infrastructure and technology needed to support a smart, low carbon energy system. Energy policy is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland, but policy, markets, systems, and infrastructure are complex and interconnected, which means that the UK Government continues to play an important role, both directly and indirectly, in shaping the local electricity and renewables sector. July of this year saw the publication of the Smart Systems and Flexibility Plan

2021 by the UK Government’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and regulator OFGEM, alongside the UK’s first Energy Digitalisation Strategy, which set out the actions needed to transition to a fully digitised energy system. Initiatives outlined include the standardisation of smart energy appliances and electric vehicle charge points, a clearer regulatory framework for storage and interconnectors and ideas on how to harness data to make a flexible system work.

If digitalisation and targets are to be achieved, it is vital that substantial investment is made into Northern Ireland’s electricity grid, and sooner rather than later. Evidence clearly shows that a smarter, more flexible system will utilise technologies such as energy storage and flexible demand to integrate high volumes of low carbon power, heat and transport and reach a carbon neutral future. We hope the new Energy Strategy delivers on the ambition needed coupled with appropriate investment to revolutionise the energy system in Northern Ireland.

If you have any queries relating to any of the matters mentioned in this article or for more information on how Carson McDowell can assist your business, please contact Le-ann Campbell from the Energy team. T: +44 (0)77 8644 4039 E: le-ann.campbell@carson-mcdowell.com W: www.carson-mcdowell.com/

The ambition to digitalise is clear, but as BEIS notes throughout the Strategy, the scale and speed of change required presents a number of complex challenges to be overcome, including cyber security, data protection and GDPR risks.

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Community generation: Winning hearts and minds A pledge to increase the number of community-owned renewable electricity generation projects in the coming years by Environment, Climate and Communications Minister, Eamon Ryan TD, has been supported by the publication of a new Community Enabling Framework. The publication of the Framework comes ahead of the of the Government’s second onshore Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (RESS-2) auction, where the number the number of community-based projects is expected to increase significantly. In 2020, Ireland’s first ever renewable energy support scheme (RESS-1) saw seven community energy projects included in the awarding of supports to 82 electricity projects. At the time the award was recognised as the first step in a move towards incentivising community involvement in the energy transition.

‘Winning the hearts and minds’ of communities and consumers, driving behavioural change, is arguably the Government’s greatest challenge in reaching its renewable electricity targets.

The Programme for Government (PfG) commits to a ‘renewables revolution’, recognising the challenges associated with a national ambition of at least 70 per cent renewable electricity by 2030. The PfG stated that communities “will play their part”.

“Future auctions will very much concentrate and try to support that community ownership development because it’s vital that if we are to have this as a just transition, that we’ve got public support for what we have to do,” Minister Ryan said after the RESS-1 award.

While community renewable electricity projects will be an important part of increasing overall renewable electricity generation, the reality is that such projects are likely to form only a small percentage of future generation.

In February 2021, the Minister outlined a new requirement to ensure community projects must be 100 per cent communityowned to gain 15-year support in the RESS.

Instead, the Government has recognised the potential benefits of increasing the levels of community buy-in to what will be required if Ireland is to hit its renewable target. The

incentivising of community generation also goes beyond community benefit funding announced under RESS-1, where communities can benefit from renewable electricity project acceptance and instead encourages their active participation in the transition.

RESS-2, focusing on onshore wind and solar generation, was originally expected to run in 2021 but is likely to be delayed until early 2022 as the Department also looks to stage Ireland’s first offshore wind auction in the same timeframe.

Community generation: Winning hearts and minds

In July 2021, the Minister signalled an intention to help communities build expertise ahead of RESS-2. Included in a package of new measures, the Minister announced: • targeted supports for communities who want to develop their own renewable projects; • Good Practice Principles to ensure communities benefit from funds generated by other renewable energy projects in their locality; and

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• a new Steering Board to guide the development of the community energy sector. “We have seen in other countries, like Germany, that direct citizen and community involvement in the green energy revolution both benefits communities and builds support for the radical transformation we need to make to reach our climate goals,” said Ryan. “We’ve already seen seven community projects, (five solar and two wind projects) succeed in our first Renewable Energy Support Scheme auction. I want to build on this by providing communities with the expertise they need to develop more of these projects.” The Minister set out that the Community Enabling Framework would assist and support communities through the complex process of electricity generation and provide a range of technical and financial supports at the various stages in the life-cycle of a renewable project. “The framework will de-risk the project development process for communities and will drive delivery on our ambitious community energy targets,” he added. Alongside targeted supports for communities, the Department has published the RESS-1 Community Benefit Fund Good Practice Principles Handbook. RESS mandates all RESS projects to establish a Community Benefit Fund worth €2/MWh of generation. It is estimated that some €4 million will be spent on sustainable community initiatives in close proximity to RESS-1 projects each year.

A third aspect of the new support package is the establishment of the RESS Community Steering Board, bringing together “a distinguished panel of experience and academic achievement in the fields of renewable energy and in community engagement and activism in Ireland”. Speaking before the first meeting of the board, Minister Ryan said: “Communities developing their own electricity generation projects is a new and exciting sector in our energy system. I want to ensure communities have a say in directing how this sector evolves. I have established a Steering Board, which includes several community representatives and advocates, as well as academic experts, to advise me on policy and implementation.” The Framework has been developed with the aim to encourage other communities to follow the lead if the seven community projects successful in the first RESS auction, which are outlined overleaf.

The RESS Community Steering Board’s membership is comprised of: • Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications — policy

• Department of Rural and Community Development (DRCD) — community advocate, Government

• Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) — grid policy

• County and City Management Association (CCMA) — community advocate, Local Government

• ESB Networks — grid delivery • EirGrid — grid delivery • Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) — implementation

• energy4all — community energy advocate, Scotland • seven representatives from the academic and community sectors

Community generation: Winning hearts and minds PROJECT NAME:

Ballytobin Solar

Ballytobin Solar Limited Solar PLACE: Kilkenny SCALE: 4MW COMPANY:

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TYPE:

PROJECT NAME:

COMPANY:

Clooncon East

Clooncon East Single

WTG TYPE: Onshore wind PLACE: Galway SCALE: 0.9MW

PROJECT NAME:

Dooleeg More

CEARTH LTD Onshore wind PLACE: Mayo SCALE: 2.5MW

Templederry Energy Resources TYPE: Solar PLACE: Galway SCALE: 4MW

PROJECT NAME:

COMPANY:

Solar PLACE: Wexford SCALE: 4.95MW

PROJECT NAME:

I.Q Solar Limited Solar PLACE: Cork SCALE: 4MW

Lisduff Solar Park

Claremorris Energy Coop Solar PLACE: Mayo SCALE: 4MW TYPE:

TYPE:

Davidstown Renewables

TYPE:

COMPANY:

Davidstown Solar

Ltd

TYPE:

Lurrig Solar Farm

Barnderg Solar

COMPANY:

PROJECT NAME:

Supply of energy a concern

As we head into the autumn and winter months the lifting of restrictions and the much-needed return to social life, there is concern within the energy industry in relation to disruption in supply. Colm McGrath, Managing Director of Surety Bonds, assesses whether this is a short-term issue or if we are looking at a long-term global issue. Ireland is not the only country with an energy crisis, nor the only country that needs to invest vastly in infrastructure. With the fastest growing economy in Europe and a growing population, current infrastructure is creaking under the pressure and it is not sustainable. Some 55 per cent of the world’s population live in cities and this growing trend is mirrored in Ireland but without the supporting investment by government in sustainable energy supply which makes living in cities attractive. Covid has changed the way we work and many of us will have a blended home/office working life which puts additional pressure on where and when energy is required. Further issues arise

with working from home and that is the additional need for data centres. As many companies move their IT infrastructure to the cloud, data centres demand huge amounts of energy and along with other large energy users, are predicted to make up 27 per cent of Ireland’s overall consumption by 2030. While 2008 to 2016 was a time of serious budget constraint, this should have been the time Ireland and the rest of the EU invested in renewable energy infrastructure in order to lift economies. Alas, we did not and we now find ourselves competing against other larger nations for much needed renewable energy projects.

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invest in such projects as money has never been cheaper. With quantitative easing globally supported by central banks, in order to support governments stepping in to stabilise markets, which were closed due to public health restrictions, along with negative interest rates, this has created an opportunity for governments to deliver long-postponed projects. In the US alone, $2 trillion of much needed investment in 20,000km of roads, 10,000 bridges, schools, the green agenda and much more, it’s going to be boom time in infrastructural spend, which should last a decade or more. The US is not the only country where this is happening, which is fantastic, particularly for companies in the construction and engineering sectors. However, there are downsides. Upward pressure on pricing will have to filter through to these projects and therefore onto the consumer. In the short-term capacity constraints could also damage Ireland’s reputation with foreign direct investors, this must be mitigated at all cost. In conclusion, it is imperative that stakeholders along the value chain, individual companies, the industry as a whole and the Government should take action to move the energy industry forward. The Government, as a key project owner should create a fertile environment for the transformation of this sector. There have been too many missed key milestones which have cost Ireland financially in the form of fines, but that is the least of our worries. The need for rapid change in how we supply and use energy is inescapable.

Colm McGrath, Managing Director Surety Bonds T: 071 962 3228 E: colm@suretybonds.ie W: www.suretybonds.ie

The incentive now, however, is for governments and private companies to

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DP Energy, leading Ireland to a cleaner renewable future Combining the talents of Buttevant and Bilbao Earlier this year, DP Energy entered into a joint venture with global renewable energy leader Iberdrola to develop DP Energy’s 3GW Irish offshore wind portfolio. Both companies are focused on decarbonisation, and ultimately achieving a genuinely green economy. The portfolio consists of three offshore wind projects, each with potential capacity of 1GW. This includes the Inis Ealga Marine Energy Park off the south coast of Ireland and Clarus Offshore Wind Farm off the coast of Clare, with both utilising floating technology. The third project is Shelmalere Offshore Wind Farm off the east coast, utilising fixedbottom technology. DP Energy CEO Simon De Pietro

At the forefront of Ireland’s journey towards a more sustainable future is Cork-based renewable energy developer, DP Energy.

POLICY, A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION 2021 has seen major development in Irish policy, in particular with the

The company, based in Buttevant, County Cork, is led by co-founders Maureen and Simon De Pietro, a mother and son partnership.

fragility of the planet’s ecology and

DP Energy has a 30-year history of developing renewable energy assets worldwide including projects across Ireland, the UK, Canada and Australia. Currently, the company has a global portfolio of over 5GW projects spanning onshore wind, solar, offshore wind, and ocean energy technologies.

emissions.

It was Blue Planet, the 1990 IMAX film which was a ‘lightbulb moment’ for the De Pietros, with the film depicting the

climate. For them, it was evidence of the damage caused by deforestation, pollution and in particular carbon

Maritime Area Planning Bill recently published, along with the National Marine Planning Framework. DP Energy welcomes this much called for reform of marine governance which gives clarity to a new

Since then, the De Pietros have grown

consenting procedure for foreshore

DP Energy into a leader in the Irish and

licences and offshore infrastructure

global renewable energy sphere.

planning. The establishment of the

In addition to being CEO of DP Energy,

Marine Area Regulatory Authority

Simon is also Co-President of Ocean

(MARA) will further provide the

Energy Europe, a Board member of

clarity of process and transparency

Marine Renewables Canada and a

needed to enable the push towards

member of the Wind Energy Ireland

Net Zero by 2050.

Council.

Upon completion, each project will provide enough clean green energy to provide electricity for up to one million Irish homes every year. DP Energy is already partnered with Iberdrola on its hybrid 320MW wind and solar Port Augusta Renewable Energy Park currently under construction in South Australia.

Achieving Ireland’s climate objectives

The Climate Change 2021 report recently issued by the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) painted a stark picture of the world’s climate crisis and the urgency of the need to accelerate decarbonisation. The development of renewable energy plays a critical role in the stabilising of the earth’s climate. Further reporting by the Environmental Protection Agency, The Marine Institute and Met Eireann echoes the IPCC report supporting the importance of renewables in the race for climate stabilisation. DP Energy, through its development of onshore and offshore projects, aims to play a significant role in helping to realise Ireland’s ambitious carbon reduction targets and play a part in global decarbonisation objectives.

Onshore wind and solar Whilst large scale offshore wind projects can deliver significant volumes of renewable energy and has a huge role to play in our future energy mix, onshore wind and solar PV also have a parallel role to play in the race to decarbonise. DP Energy is developing both ‘offshore wind scale’ multi hundred MW wind and solar projects onshore in Australia and Canada (including a 450MW wind project in mid Queensland, and a 325MW solar project in Alberta) and smaller distribution scale projects (sub 50MW) across both of these markets. DP Energy believes there is a need for a balance of generation asset sizes at different levels within the electricity network and a balance of technologies. At a smaller scale, DP Energy is actively supporting the proposed Buttevant Solar Farm, a 5MW community led project. Such local renewable projects enable people to engage directly with the technology, and contribute directly to our mutual

decarbonisation goal and should be an important part of the renewables mix.

Ocean energy DP Energy has taken a similarly early position in ocean energy, as it did in with wind in the early 1990s and, as the technology matures, the company sees significant future opportunities for wave energy, particularly on Ireland’s west coast. DP Energy’s first ocean energy venture, the Uisce Tapa tidal project located in the Bay of Fundy, Nova Scotia, is expected to enter construction in 2023. DP Energy has recently signed a Joint Development Agreement for the project with two significant Japanese companies, Chubu Electric Power and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K Line). The 9MW project utilises the 1.5MW Andritz tidal turbine technology already demonstrated in Scotland and is expected to deliver predictable energy (independent of wind and sun) for many years. The Uisce Tapa project reinforces DP Energy’s position as a leader in the implementation of innovative new renewable energy technologies and is an essential learning step leading to commercial scale projects in Europe, Canada and elsewhere. This includes its broader plans for developing wave energy in parallel with floating wind technology off the West Coast of Ireland.

Beyond simple generation Beyond the development of standalone wind and solar generation assets, DP Energy is an enthusiastic believer in blending multiple renewable technologies into hybrid systems (such as wind/solar and wind/wave). This maximises the grid

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In order to achieve Ireland’s targets to reduce CO2 emissions by 51 per cent by 2030 and achieve net-zero by 2050, the transition to renewable energy is key.

integration potential of the technologies and increases the value of the power to the system. Improving the generation profile with blended technologies naturally leads to the addition of energy storage (such as pumped hydro, battery storage) to shift the generation and shape the profile (as well as provide other system services). The use of conversion technologies such as hydrogen further enhances this by not only providing a long-term storage solution but also an alternative means of energy distribution or export. The DP Energy team in Ireland has expanded significantly over the past 24 months, both to deliver its Irish offshore development ambitions and to support its broader goals across the other jurisdictions in which it operates.

Conclusion DP Energy has been an early mover in onshore wind energy in Ireland since the 1990s and is enthusiastic to continue to support the acceleration of Irish renewable energy through its offshore wind plans with Iberdrola. Ultimately, DP Energy anticipates Ireland will become not only self-sufficient in energy thus increasing our energy security, but also a major exporter through electrons and also hydrogen. This small island has significant potential with its vast offshore resources to punch well above its weight in terms of contribution to world carbon reduction.

More information can be found on www.dpenergy.com.

The future of anaerobic digestion in Ireland

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With pressure on the agriculture sector, which accounts for 33 per cent of Ireland’s carbon emissions to reform its emissions, performances, anaerobic digestion is touted as one of the most high-profile solutions. While concrete plans for its use have yet to be settled in Ireland, there are many examples elsewhere of how it can aid decarbonisation and diversify the income streams of farmers. The 2020s are seen as a crucial decade for the development of anaerobic digestion (AD) in Ireland; similar to Northern Ireland, which has already seen encouraging uptake of the method, the Republic’s abundance of livestock and the availability of manures make it an ideal location for the process.

Income diversification has become a key selling point to farmers interested in AD; those in the Republic have seen their counterparts in Northern Ireland benefit from its use and contrast it to the Renewable Electricity Support Scheme, where it is felt in the agricultural sector that farmer engagement is simply seen as a means to asset development.

Options for the use of the biogas that AD produces, as included in the SEAI’s 2020 on-farm guide to AD, include the combustion of the biogas for use in gas boilers to create heat for things such as hot water or high temperature steam. It can also be used to power gas engines that produce electricity, or electricity and gas, which combine to make combined heat and power (CHP). Another use for the biogas is to upgrade it to the standard required for the gas grid, turning it into biomethane, which can be injected into a local or national gas grid, used in portable compressed gas containers or as a vehicle fuel.

Around 19,000 AD plants are operational in Europe, producing 167 TWh of biogas per year, with the vast majority of these plants producing biogas for combustion to generate renewable electricity and receiving subsidies. In terms of biomethane production, which is broadly seen as the future of AD in Europe, the natural gas substitute is currently produced in 725 plants across 18 European countries, producing 26 TWh per year. The countries with the highest amounts of biomethane plants are Germany (232), France (131), and the UK (80).

The SEAI lists the benefits of the use of farm-based AD as: recycling of farm wastes into a valuable fertiliser (digestate); reduction of farm-based environmental issues, such air pollution from manures; reduction of the negative impact of farming on national environmental targets; provision of a renewable energy source (biogas) for farm use; cost savings on chemical fertiliser and energy purchases; and potential offering of additional farm income streams from sale of excess electricity or heat.

The European Biogas Association (EBA) predicts that biogas and biomethane production in Europe could double by 2030 and more than quadruple by 2050, with 467 TWh produced across Europe per year by 2030. To match this ambition, the Irish Government estimates that 20 per cent of the current natural gas demand could be met by biomethane by 2030 with the correct supports in place. What form those supports could take remains to be seen, much to the frustration of the Irish agricultural sector.

Bioenergy: The “sleeping giant” in decarbonising Ireland - IrBEA The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have recognised that bioenergy is the largest current contributor to renewable energy across the world. The IPCC strongly highlights the role that bioenergy can play in carbon removal as well as in the development of bioenergy-based fuel alternatives for fossil fuels.

Fossil fuels can be displaced with indigenous resources such as biogas, bioliquids, energy crops, woodchip and firewood. To grow the sector, mobilising finance is a key enabler. Many stakeholders note that there is an abundance of capital available but that the Irish policy and regulatory landscape is seen as an impediment to the development of bioenergy projects. The scale of the challenge in meeting emission reduction targets is enormous. None of the solutions proposed today will get us to where we need to be by 2050. There is a need to focus on pragmatism over ideology and recognising that all renewable technologies have a part to play. Specifically, a 40 per cent renewable heat target by 2030 should be enshrined in government policy as per the Renewable Energy Ireland (REI) 40by30 report. Solid biomass and biogas can do the heavy lifting in decarbonising heat across all sectors

but particularly in the high temperature heat range. This can complement the ambitious targets for low temperature heat decarbonisation using heat pumps. The Biofuels Obligation Scheme delivered 520,000 tonnes of CO2 savings in 2020. Biofuel blending levels in petrol and diesel fuels need to be significantly increased. Biogas can aid agricultural emission reduction, through capturing the gas produced by slurries and farm residues using Anaerobic Digestion technology and using the resulting digestate to reduce the use of chemical fertilisers. The policy and regulatory environment needs to assist in mobilising this industry.

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While bioenergy deployment in Ireland is significantly lagging behind Europe, the Irish Bioenergy Association (IrBEA) strongly articulates the potential which exists. A blind spot exists in Irish policy and support towards bioenergy compared to other renewable technologies. There are multi-sectoral benefits associated with the sector which are not valued including rural development, indigenous generated energy, the bioeconomy, enhancing biodiversity and agricultural diversification. The Support Scheme for Renewable Heat (SSRH) supports renewable heat used in industry while ensuring that biomass is sourced through sustainable forest management

as governed by strict criteria in the RED II Directive.

With investment, support and the right policy framework the potential of bioenergy to assist in decarbonising Ireland can be realised. Seán Finan B.E C.Eng MIEI IrBEA CEO

Irish Bioenergy Association Who Are We? IrBEA was founded in 1999 and is the representative body for the bioenergy industry on the island of Ireland. IrBEA works on behalf of its members across the bioenergy sectors of biomass, biogas, biofuels, biochar, woodfuels and energy crops. IrBEA is recognised by Government and key stakeholders as the voice of the Bioenergy industry. The organisation is one of the founding members of Renewable Energy Ireland and is affiliated to Bioenergy Europe and the European Biogas Association (EBA). The organisation’s activities are managed by the CEO assisted by a small executive staff team. IrBEA is governed by a Board of Directors which includes an elected President and Vice President. Policy direction is provided by a Management Committee and specific subcommittees. IrBEA manages and administers the Wood Fuel Quality Assurance Scheme (WFQA) and is currently involved in a number of Bioenergy Research and Development projects on biogas and biochar. IrBEA administers a register of Biomass Designers and Biomass installers. Full details on www.irbea.org

Our membership The diverse membership includes farmers and foresters, fuel suppliers, energy development companies, equipment manufacturers and suppliers, engineers, financiers and tax advisers, legal firms, consultants, planners, research organisations, local authorities, education, and advisory bodies – anyone with an interest in the bioenergy industry.

Our mission and objectives: INFLUENCE • Influence policy makers to promote the development of bioenergy

IMPROVE • Improve public awareness of bioenergy as a realistic option for renewable energy supply

LIAISE • Liaise with similar interest groups and stakeholders

PROMOTE • Promote and represent the interests of members

NETWORK • Networking and information sharing among those interested in bioenergy development

PROJECTS • Promote the implementation of bioenergy projects

For more Information and to apply for membership visit us online at www.irbea.org 53

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Anaerobic digestion in Northern Ireland Following the publication of policy options for Northern Ireland’s upcoming Energy Strategy, David Whelan looks at the potential future role of anaerobic digestion (AD) technology and biogases in decarbonisation ambitions. In autumn 2021, the UK Government will launch a Green Gas support scheme for AD-produced biomethane injected into the gas grid. The scheme, however, will be applicable only in Great Britain. Despite the uptake of AD technology being significantly greater in Northern Ireland (Northern Ireland has three and a half times as many AD-based generating stations per square kilometre as Great Britain), leading it to be described as the UK’s hotspot for AD, the technologies role in Northern Ireland’s decarbonisation ambitions has yet to be defined. AD has been recognised as having a role to play in Northern Ireland’s drive towards net zero carbon, especially in a scenario where policy decisionmakers

opt for a high gasification approach, whereby biomethane and hydrogen eventually replace natural gas in the grid infrastructure. However, the extent of the role it will play and the supports available to encourage growth will depend largely on the shape the Energy Strategy set to be published by the Department for the Economy later this year. Anaerobic digestion is a process whereby biomass feedstock is broken down in the absence of oxygen, producing methane and carbon dioxide in the form of biogas. Biogas can be combusted to generate electricity and/or heat (combined heat and power). Despite a high animal stocking density, meaning Northern Ireland enjoys a

wealth of animal waste feedstock in comparison to the rest of the UK, initial uptake of AD technology in Northern Ireland was slow when compared to Great Britain. However, the decision for Northern Ireland not to fast follow Great Britain in closing and subsequently reducing financial support schemes, meant that Northern Ireland became the most attractive region in the UK for AD investment. Currently, the vast majority of AD facilities in Northern Ireland are farmbased. The UK’s biogas map shows that in June 2019 there were 76 operational AD facilities in Northern Ireland, the majority of which (64) predominantly use agricultural feedstock, with the remaining 12 using municipal, commercial, and industrial

waste as feedstock. Out of the 76 AD facilities, 57 use a mix of animal byproducts and energy crops and silage to feed their ADs.

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The biogas being generated in Northern Ireland is largely used for onsite combined heat and power, however, increasingly, surplus electricity is sold to export suppliers. While undoubtedly the use of biogas for heat and power has a role to play in Northern Ireland’s decarbonisation, most people recognise that its greatest potential impact could be facilitating the injection of upgraded biogas (biomethane) into the existing natural gas grid.

“The Department has set out its recognition that Northern Ireland’s substantial rural agriculture base can support the growth of biogas and that Northern Ireland’s modern gas network is more suitable for zero carbon gas than older networks.”

Injection As well as plans in the UK, other European countries including Germany, France, Italy, and Denmark are already utilising AD-supplied biomethane in their national grids. However, injection of biomethane is currently not being undertaken in Northern Ireland. A number of challenges stand in the way of the viability of policy that encourages the uptake of biomethane generation technology as a means to decarbonise Northern Ireland’s gas network. The first is the scale of the impact a fully decarbonised gas system (using both biomethane and hydrogen) would have. Currently almost 70 per cent of homes in Northern Ireland and a significant number of businesses still rely on oil for heating. The Utility Regulator estimates that 65 per cent of properties in the region will be connected to the gas grid by 2023 but even if achieved, a significant portion could still rely on fossil fuel for heat, unless an electrified solution is found. A second challenge is the potential push towards electrification for heat, which could reduce the need for future expansion of the gas grid. The Department for the Economy, in preparation for its Energy Strategy is currently reviewing the costs and benefits of biogas and biomethane, seeking to identify the potential scale or local biogas production, commercial viability, potential additional support and wider environmental and sustainability measures needed. However, a recently produced policy options paper spelled out numerous scenarios for consideration. The Department has recognised that Northern Ireland’s substantial rural

agriculture base can support the growth of biogas and that Northern Ireland’s modern gas network is more suitable for zero carbon gas than older networks, however, it states that in a scenario whereby high electrification is targeted (100 per cent RES-E by 2050), heat pumps provide the majority of heat supplied in the domestic and services sector, complimented by high levels of energy efficiency.

generation particularly in relation to

Such a scenario would negate the expansion of the current gas network and locally produced biogas and hydrogen would aid the network in playing a small role supplementing heat pumps.

per cent) of any region despite having

However, this is not the case in a high gasification scenario, whereby a greater focus on gas means the network is fully decarbonised with a mix of hydrogen and biogas and is expanded to reach a larger percentage of the population. The UK advisory body, the Climate Change Committee on assessing the role of biomethane in Northern Ireland described it as a “low-regret option” and recommends continued government support. Further challenges to AD technology in Northern Ireland exist in the form of public opposition. Although mainly aimed at larger AD facilities, public opposition has been raised in relation to environmental, noise and odour concerns for potential projects in the likes of Omagh, Newtownabbey and Belfast. Wider concerns have been raised around the environmental impact of incentivising the uptake of AD

ammonia. Emissions from ammonia, a source of nitrogen, are increased when large amounts of silage and some litters are stored on site or spread, and nitrogen can cause damage to ecosystems and waterways. As a result of its agricultural sector, Northern Ireland already produces the UK’s highest ammonia emissions (12 only 3 per cent of the population and 6 per cent of the UK land area. Greater rollout of AD technology could negate the need for Northern Ireland to export large amounts of its animal waste, as is the case currently. The Republic of Ireland is Northern Ireland’s main export market for excess animal waste and concern has been raised that while the Northern Ireland Protocol enables this export channel to remain open, any cessation of the Protocol would present a challenge in how to manage excess waste. Higher levels of AD technology reduce the amount of waste that needs to be exported. AD technology has a greater role to play in Northern Ireland’s energy mix than is currently the case, however, two factors will largely define to what extent it is scaled up across Northern Ireland. The first is what supports are made available through policy and this is likely to be defined through the publication of the energy strategy. The second is the extent to which gas grid injection of biomethane is facilitated. 55

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Standards for climate action: Where green innovation meets policy from PhD researchers and start-up owners, all the way through to policymakers and multi-national executives. As a result, the final output of the Committee, the Standard, upholds principals such as safety, efficiency, and interoperability, while also incorporating the latest developments in policy, research and innovation. Standards set the bar for the products, services and processes used and made available within Ireland, making them an incredibly useful tool with which to secure a climate-neutral future.

Bringing innovation into the mainstream

Now is the time for policy makers and public and private sector organisations to realise the vital role standards play in securing a sustainable future. The value of developing and implementing technical standards has been recognised for decades. Standardised products and processes help the global economy to run smoothly and efficiently, promoting best practice across many industries. Standards on safety have also improved the health and wellbeing of billions of people around the globe. Now, the greatest challenge faced by humanity is the threat of irreversible climate change. Standards can also play a key role in this arena, helping us meet our ambitious climate targets. The Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021 sets Ireland on a legally binding path to net-zero emissions by 2050. Among Ireland’s government agencies who will

be responsible for supporting the Act is the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI), who will provide vital support through the creation of standards in various subject areas. Harnessing the power of standards, NSAI will support stakeholders in setting the tone for how green measures, such as home retrofitting, energy innovation and the circular economy can be utilised in Ireland.

Why standards? Standards are formed through a consensus-based process, taking into account as many voices as possible. The documents are put together by standards committees, composed of stakeholders with widely varying backgrounds, expertise, and interests,

According to the IDA, Ireland is 11th in the world for its overall quality of scientific research. As a country with such a high level of activity in the research, development, and innovation space, it is vital that the latest discoveries and solutions in science and technology reach their full potential in our industries and societies. Standards are the perfect vehicle through which to do that: by introducing new concepts and ideas to a standards committee, researchers can gain professional recognition from industry peers, all while helping to establish a new and improved national norm which could contribute to Ireland’s ambitious climate targets. Researchers can also use participation in standards committees to take their RDI project to the next level. Public funds value standards as a research project outcome, making it a valuable addition to any project proposal. Meanwhile, those looking to bring their idea to life in the form of a new product or service can use the insight of the

standards committee to ensure interoperability and compliance with the relevant regulations. During our climate emergency, introducing real world, market-ready solutions in a timely way is made possible with standards. To learn more about how innovators and researchers can benefit from and support standardisation, visit: NSAI.ie/standards/standardsinnovation/

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Policy, realised As documents which set the bar for products, services, and processes in Ireland, NSAI standards reflect and support the latest policies as set out by the Government. These requirements are combined with knowledge from a team of technical experts who live and breathe the industry, resulting in a standard that can show how complying with regulations can be achieved in the real world. Not only can standards themselves strongly support national policies, there are also significant benefits for a government department, agency, health trust or local authority to become involved in setting and reviewing standards. Policymakers’ active engagement with standards committees can allow them to implement policy in a significantly more informed way. By directly observing and working with the sector’s businesses, researchers, and stakeholders, they are offered the opportunity to grow their industry awareness. In the process, they build great capacity to spot potential policy challenges and solutions which could arise. Standardisation can therefore be used to ensure that all public bodies are working to the same agenda, in this case, the goal of a more sustainable future through the Climate Action Plan, in collaboration with experts from the private sector and in a voluntary space. Policymakers who work on standards successfully ‘get in on the ground floor’, ensuring implementation of policy is as effective and achievable as possible for the industry. Find out more about Standards help to realise policies and regulations at: NSAI.ie/standards/supportingstandards/

Making the connection between hydrogen research and standards In June 2021, NSAI and Gas Networks Ireland started a two-year secondment to work on standardisation activities relating to hydrogen. Recognising the fuel as a relatively new area with great potential to be adopted nationwide, a Hydrogen Standardisation Expert was appointed. Their role is to increase Ireland’s pool of knowledge relating to hydrogen standardisation, drawing on the widest possible panel of experts including Irish academia, think tanks and research bodies. Collaborating with NSAI’s counterparts across Europe, these experts will then work to create new and improved suite of hydrogen Standards. This new venture aligns with the Government’s commitment to invest into the research and development of hydrogen energy, and ultimately, it will facilitate informed decision making around standards for the use of this new fuel in Ireland and beyond, helping to drive climate-neutral policies.

NSAI’s current climate actions In support of the growing demand in Government and across industries to answer the climate emergency’s call, NSAI has been identifying and prioritising standardisation activities in areas relating to climate action. Currently, NSAI has several standards committees working in climate action related areas such as wind energy, solar energy, alternative fuels in transport, electrification of heat and transport, and the circular economy. This scope is only growing; the Authority in collaboration with policymakers, researchers and industry professionals, identifies new areas in which to begin standardisation activities. For example, the recently published Standard Recommendation (SR 504:2021) which provides guidelines for

the design, installation, commissioning, and maintenance of heat pump systems was developed to ensure best practice in this technology which will facilitate a move to low carbon home heating. More recently, the area of hydrogen energy is one in which NSAI is supporting new cross-disciplinary standards work. Innovative technology is key to climate action. By facilitating collaboration between Ireland's policy makers, researchers and industry experts, the Authority can support Ireland's pursuit of climate neutrality by getting 'ahead of the curve' and ensuring best international practice through standards.

To find out more about how Standards are empowering Ireland’s future, visit: NSAI.ie/Standards

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The Commission for the Regulation of Utilities’ roadmap for the delivery of the EU’s Clean Energy Package’s energy and renewable directives outlines how the CRU plans to deliver Ireland’s renewable and energy goals in 2021. The deliverables for the year 2021 that the CRU lays out in its roadmap, published in February 2021, can be broken down into three subgroups: updates to the retail market; new market activities and the role of the distribution system operator (DSO).

Updates to the retail market In terms of updates to the retail market, the CRU began conducting an internal review in 2020 to assess what updates were needed to the Supplier Handbook to comply with new requirements in the EU’s Electricity Directive; this review will continue into 2021. The CRU will “explore the options on how to introduce

these few updated requirements around billing information, contracts, switching, smart meters and terms and conditions”, with the handbook update process following similar procedure to the last update, meaning a consultation will be published to “allow for market participant input, which will be followed by a subsequent decision”. The rollout of smart metres will continue to be monitored by the CRU, and engagement with the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications on the transposition of the Electricity Directive will also continue, “with focus on the smart metering articles”. CRU is also in the process of

developing the Smart Meter Data Access Code, which will “define rules of access, and processing of, personal data from smart meters”. The code will “ensure there is a clear set of criteria outlined for data access to ensure consumer protections are in place for data being accessed through smart meters”.

New market activities A consultation will be published that will address the feedback received from calls for evidence on active consumers and energy communities put out in 2020, “as well as some follow-up discussions which were held with industry stakeholders and market

“Under the current regulations in Ireland, only generators with a maximum export capacity over 10MW are required to participate in the Balancing Market, but under the Clean Energy Package, all participants, with certain limited exemptions only, will be responsible for any imbalances that they cause in the market.”

Role of the DSO The CRU says that it “gained better understanding throughout 2020 on what the Clean Energy Package envisages the role of the DSO to be in the electricity markets”, specifically, “that they should aim to procure flexibility services from distributed generation and demand response, they should act as a neutral market facilitator and that they should aid energy communities in facilitating the transfer of energy between participants”.

wind, and the ending of their exemption

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treatment of the final customers they conduct business with”. The work laid out in this area in the roadmap is expected to run into 2022.

is expected to result in higher costs for these projects. The Clean Energy Package also prohibits capacity payments for generation facilities emitting certain levels of CO2, which change depending on the time period. This are set out as follows: •

Currently, and since 4 July 2019, any new generation facility which emits more than 550g of CO2 of fossil fuel origin per kWh of electricity; and

•

From 1 July 2025, all generation facilities which emit more than 550g

participants”, with the content of the consultation “expected to cover a variety of topics that need to be addressed to progress development of an enabling regulatory framework to incorporate market actors engaged in the new energy activities outlined in both Directives into the electricity market”. Subsequent consultations on active consumers and energy communities are envisioned, with the topic of participation in demand response aggregation to be discussed as well. As part of its review in 2020, the CRU “also understood that the provisions in the Directives encourage participation by third-party service providers to offer their assistance to active consumers and energy communities”. These service providers are considered to be market actors as they will provide services “which enable participation in the new energy activities provided” for in the European directives. Anticipation within the CRU is that there “may need to be further consideration on how to ensure a level-playing field for these market participants, but also ensure fair

The CRU states that it aims to explore these ideas further in 2021 and aims to ensure that requirements in Article 32 are upheld and ESB Networks is incentivised to fulfil the expectations of the DSO as prescribed in the Clean Energy Package. A consultation or a call for evidence to collect views from industry and stakeholders are two options mentioned as the CRU looks to advance this workstream.

What this means for Ireland The Clean Energy Package consists of eight separate legislative acts, most of which entered into force in January 2020, and represents “a major step towards completing the energy union”. The remaining reforms needed in order for Ireland to comply with the package’s regulation will change the face of energy regulation and provision in the country. Under the current regulations in Ireland, only generators with a maximum export capacity over 10MW are required to participate in the Balancing Market, but under the Clean Energy Package, all participants, with certain limited exemptions only, will be responsible for any imbalances that they cause in the market. There are numerous projects under 10MW in Ireland, mainly onshore

of CO2 of fossil fuel origin per kWh of electricity and more than 350kg CO2 of fossil fuel origin on average per year per installed kWe. To contextualise this in the Irish sense, the ESB’s 2017 report Ireland’s Low Carbon Future – Dimensions of a Solution noted that combined cycle gas turbines typically produce between 350 and 380g of CO2 per kWh. Ireland’s current capacity remuneration mechanism is still new, having been only recently redesigned to accompany the ISEM market change. Any enforced reduction in the scope of the programme will certainly be of concern to current participants, and it is unlikely that these participants will be satisfied by the cross-border participation initiatives that are also part of the Clean Energy Package. Having just adjusted to relatively new I-SEM regulations in the recent past, Irish market participants will now have to adjust to European legislation such as the above. Participants will be required to monitor the CEP-related actions of the SEM Committee in order to track whether further adjustments will be necessary.

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A practical solution in the fight against climate change

The Irish electricity sector has changed significantly over the past 10 years and is totally unrecognisable from 20 years ago. At the turn of the century, a stateowned incumbent operated a fleet of gas, coal, and oil plant, with large scale non-fossil fuel generation just a flicker in a futurologist’s eye. The decarbonisation agenda was simply not on the agenda. Today, onshore wind generation is the growth story of the electricity market while fossil fuel-based technologies are in retreat. Change is also happening in another essential service to society which is supporting baseload power generation: the waste industry. While there is a slogan that everyone knows, reduce, reuse, recycle, another R-word, recovery needs to be added to the lexicon. Dublin Waste to Energy is the largest facility of its kind in Ireland, treating 600,000 tonnes of residual 60

municipal solid waste (‘MSW’) every year, some 35 per cent of the country’s MSW. Its waste treatment operation recovers valuable energy from nonrecyclable waste and puts it back into the circular economy as sustainable fuel for baseload power generation. Now in its fifth year of operation the facility has become a critical part of Ireland’s waste management infrastructure.

technologies. There is no option but to rapidly accelerate toward sustainable energy and Waste to Energy is currently the best practical environmental option available for MSW. It is not just part of the EU Energy Union, but is at the heart of the circular economy, utilising waste and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by not simply disposing of waste into landfill.

The best way to protect and improve our environment makes use of practical

This is because the key benefit of Waste to Energy is, contrary to landfill, it

If society is serious about using practical solutions in the fight against climate change, then Waste to Energy is a vital part of the decarbonisation toolbox. Demand for electricity is continuing to rise, and with the advance of electric vehicles and data centres will continue to do so. For transport, for heating and for data, electricity is key to driving positive change in our society. But the growth in the energy sector brings about conflicting challenges, and advancing decarbonisation, digitalisation and decentralisation requires us to recall the golden rules of a healthy energy system. The simple objectives of a healthy energy system, namely that of energy security, energy sustainability and energy ‘equity’ (accessibility and affordability) make up the energy ‘trilemma’. The World Energy Council puts Ireland 17th on its international league table to gauge performance against the trilemma, granting us grade ‘A’ for both equity and sustainability, but only a ‘C’ grade on energy security. 2021 has been a remarkable year for electricity security in Ireland. The year began with a backdrop of poor thermal reliability of an ageing fleet and amber alerts as the system’s ability to meet rising electricity demand was stretched. European commodity prices, buoyed by increasing demand and poor gas availability, saw markets rising to multiyear highs, and as a result the bar for the record daily electricity price in Ireland was pushed higher, time and time again. Gas prices and coal prices have now hit ten-year highs, and carbon prices have never been higher. The limited interconnection to Great Britain (a market that faces the same issues of tight generation supplies and a high level of wind penetration similarly correlated to the conditions here) can sometimes alleviate the pressure on the

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doesn’t generate methane in its combustion process. While carbon generates the headlines, one of the fastest, most cost-effective strategies to rapidly reduce the rate of warming is to target methane. All greenhouse gases are bad since they trap heat in the atmosphere, but methane is especially nasty. If released without being burned, it has over 80 times the warming impact of CO2 over the first 20 years after it reaches the atmosphere. Acting now to reduce methane has immediate benefits to the climate that reductions in carbon dioxide cannot provide on their own.

“Cutting methane is the strongest lever we have to slow climate change over the next 25 years.” Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UN Environment Programme

system here, but this is not guaranteed and can occasionally drive further system shortages. Wind generation, while usefully overperforming at times of system stress earlier in the year, was often absent during the recent summer months. All this has led to a strange and unusual combination of record power prices during the summer months of low electricity demand. Waste to Energy is filling the gap providing a source of baseload power generation. Waste to Energy is therefore vital, in that it offers a dispatchable, reliable and local source of power generation from a predominantly renewable fuel. It offers greenhouse gas savings not just from landfill diversion but also as a substitute for fossil fuels. It is a technology designed to operate baseload on a 24/7 basis to facilitate the seamless integration of two essential services, processing non-recyclable waste from communities across Ireland as a valuable resource rather than something to be discarded. In other words, Waste to Energy is an example of joined-up thinking which is precisely what the EU Circular Economy Action Plan is designed to promote. To ensure practical implementation of the Circular Action Plan, it is therefore contingent upon the regulatory bodies in Ireland to ensure good, progressive initiatives are not undermined.

Rulemaking in a vacuum will lead to suboptimal outcomes. For example, requiring Waste to Energy plants to dispatch down may offer a slither of additional flexibility in the electricity market, but impacts significantly on an essential sanitary service, bringing large levels of disruption to waste processing capacity for the nation more generally. Waste to Energy, in addition to its primary objective to treat residual nonrecyclable waste in a safe and secure manner, plays a pivotal role in moving toward a resource-efficient, low-carbon circular economy. Considering the Government’s 2030 emissions objectives and the aspirations beyond, Dublin Waste to Energy will continue to support these ambitious targets. Dublin Waste to Energy provides practical proven solutions to waste disposal through recovery. It is part of the wider national effort powering the transition to a decarbonised economy whilst maintaining a secure supply of baseload electricity 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Dublin Waste to Energy Ltd. Pigeon House Road, Dublin 4 T: 01 6032 100 E: dublininfo@covanta.com 61

Credit: Les Coleman.

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Transport: Avoid, shift and improve Achieving a targeted 51 per cent reduction in transport emissions by 2030 will require a complete reset of our behaviours, outlines Trinity College Dublin’s Brian Caulfield. reduce our emissions in this sector by 51 per cent. This is a very ambitious target and one that is not for the faint hearted, realising this reduction will require substantial investment and for us all to do our part. To achieve this change, we must overcome a number of substantial barriers, including: •

outside of our urban areas the average distances traveled to work are large;

•

the 2019 the CSO National Travel Survey found that almost 75 per cent of all trips in Ireland are made by car and almost 30 per cent of these are less than 2km;

•

outside of Dublin population density rates tend to be low making it more difficult to service these locations by public transport;

If Ireland is to meet its carbon reduction targets for 2030, how we move and how we use various modes of mobility will change irrevocably. Transportation accounts for approximately 20 per cent of all CO2 emissions in Ireland. By 2030, it is planned that we would

•

the demand for transport is expected to increase as our

population and workforce expand over the next decade, resulting in extra demand for transport services; and •

while it has increased in the past number of years our uptake in electric vehicles has been slow.

While some of the above are greater barriers than others and some, such as the short distances traveled, present themselves as opportunities, nevertheless the scale of the problem should not be underestimated. At a national level and an international level, the principles of avoid, shift and improve in relation to reducing emissions is being used to frame how we tackle this problem.

Avoid Policies that examine ways to avoid and reduce trips generally tend to be centered on methods to better plan our urban areas, to reduce the need for

trips in the first place. Internationally, they tend to look at examples of transit orientated developments whereby, when high density and mixed-use developments are constructed, they have high quality public transport provided. These types of developments tend to have limited car parking and use both public transport and shared mobility options to provide transport services to residents.

Travel demand management measures, such as working from home, also fall under the remit of avoid and reduce. The research conducted in Ireland and internationally show that there can be substantial emissions savings from working from home. However, some argue that the work trip can be replaced by several smaller trips, usually taken by car, and this then can erode any emissions savings. The creation of remote working hubs across the country may also provide emission savings and research conducted in Trinity has shown that they could offer a substantial emissions and travel time savings.

Shift The next step is to examine how we shift transport trips onto more sustainable modes. Typically, this tends to be one of the hardest nuts to crack in transportation policy development and planning. The main issue here is to provide alternatives that are as close as possible to the private car in terms of flexibility, cost and convenience. This is a substantial challenge especially in a country like Ireland with low residential density. The improvement of public transport and the provision of new heavy and light rail services is very costly and can take time. The current projections for projects such as MetroLink in Dublin, is that it will not commence operation until early 2030s, years after the target date for a 51 per cent reduction in emissions. It is aimed that the BusConnects project will be completed by the end of the decade, further demonstrating the need for more rapid improvements in public transport. In the interim, while

these large transport projects come to fruition, changes to the bus network and also the promotion of active modes can provide some carbon reductions. Specifically, when we look at active modes (walking and cycling), one can see the amount of investment that has been earmarked for these modes and the amount of infrastructure that has been put in place over the past year. Active modes of transport will play a large role in reducing the 30 per cent of our trips that are under 2km.

Improve The final stage in the three-pronged process of reducing emissions from transport is the improve stage. This stage is mainly focused upon improving the ways in which we move by using new technologies and new fuel types power our vehicles more sustainably. The majority of the attention at this stage is focused upon how we power our private vehicle fleet and our public transport modes. In Ireland, we have very ambitious targets for an increase in electric vehicles and much of our carbon reduction strategies are based around a high penetration rate of these vehicles. There are many obstacles in the way of achieving this ambition, particularly related to when price parity between electric vehicles and traditional vehicles will be reached and to what extent the State will have to incentivise the uptake of these vehicles. The charging infrastructure required and the flexibility of the power grid are also large projects which need finished to achieve our 2030 targets. However, the electrification of mobility is not the soul remit of private cars and this electrification has been happening in

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This concept has gained a lot of traction in the past two to three years with many cities and areas looking at the concept of a 15-minute city. Under this concept, residents would have access to many amenities within 15 minutes of their home, resulting in shorter journeys and reducing emissions when non-car modes are used.

“The task at hand to reduce our emissions in this field is substantial. It will require a complete reset of our behaviors around how and where we move, a change in urban forms with more space dedicated to lower carbon options and a substantial investment by both the state and its citizens.” bicycles and scooters over the past two to three years. One could argue that the electric vehicle targets should also include bicycles and scooters and that incentives for these should also be included. The improve stage also examines how we fuel our public transport modes and extensive work has been conducted to date on this by the National Transport Authority trialing hydrogen, electric and hybrid buses in various locations across the country. This combined with the electrification of the heavy rail network should see substantial emissions reductions from these modes. As the State ramps up investment in these modes of transport and, as mentioned earlier, these alternatives become, to some degree, as attractive as the private car, it will have been said to have provided all the ‘carrots’ required for people to either avoid, shift or improve. Should the necessary reductions in emissions not be realised, then the argument would be clear for this ‘stick’ approach to be used. This would inevitably be in the form of either or both road user pricing and limitations on parking within our urban areas. The task at hand to reduce our emissions in this field is substantial. It will require a complete reset of our behaviors around how and where we move, a change in urban forms with more space dedicated to lower carbon options and a substantial investment by both the State and its citizens. Brian Caulfield is an Associate Professor, Centre for Transport Research, Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering, Trinity College Dublin.

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Tapping into Ireland’s offshore wind potential calls for change headquartered company, combined with a very strong, supportive and ambitious new owner,” the Chief Executive adds. “Ireland, quite simply, has one of the best offshore renewable energy resources anywhere in the world. We have a sea area of approximately 900,000 km2 which at over 10 times the size of our landmass, is one of the largest seabed territories in Europe. We also have some of the highest wind resource you’ll find anywhere on the globe.

Mary Quaney, Group Chief Executive, Mainstream Renewable Power.

Mary Quaney, Mainstream Renewable Power’s Chief Executive, discusses the potential for Ireland to be a world leader in offshore wind energy generation. When advocates speak of Ireland becoming a “European renewable energy superpower”, Mary Quaney knows what that actually means. As Group Chief Executive Officer of Mainstream Renewable Power, she is not inclined to indulge in hyperbole. Still, she does acknowledge that this is a “very, very exciting time”. Quaney joined Mainstream in 2009, and was the company’s Group Chief Financial Officer from 2017. She was appointed to the board in 2019 and was appointed as Chief Executive in August 2020. During this first year in her new role, the company has signed a €1 billion deal with Aker Horizons. The Norwegian company, founded by Kjell Inge Røkke, one of Norway’s most successful businessmen, has taken a 75 per cent equity stake. “With the Aker Group now as our controlling shareholder, we are part of a

much larger organisation. Access to the capital markets provides a very strong point now for us to grow quite significantly over this next period of time, so it’s a very exciting phase for Mainstream. “The development, construction and operation of renewable energy is a very capital-intensive type of business, particularly in the context of Mainstream’s substantial development pipeline. “So, being part of the Aker group really provides the very strong environment to facilitate deployment of significant amounts of capital, plus the synergies within the Aker group are very important.” Mainstream remain a separate company within the Aker Group, retaining its preexisting brand, identity and management team and Mainstream still retains 25 per cent of retail shareholders, the vast majority of whom are Irish individuals. “We continue to be an Irish

“The long-term potential is in the region of 75 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind power to be realised on the west coast.” Quaney also highlights the opportunities to develop and grow supply chains locally. “We have the opportunity to develop an industry sector to rival the ‘tech’ or the ‘pharma’ industries that have been so successful in Ireland,” she says. “The Government has clearly stated that offshore wind is absolutely essential to meeting the overall energy ambition of 70 per cent renewable energy electricity by 2030 and with its newly published Climate Bill, the Irish Government aims to reduce total carbon emissions by 51 per cent by 2030 compared to 2018 and commits Ireland to climate neutrality by 2050. “So really, the potential is here to become a world leader in offshore wind energy generation.” The Maritime Area Planning Bill, which Taoiseach Micheál Martin has hailed as “the biggest reform of marine governance in a century”, comes before the Oireachtas this term. However, Quaney identifies three policy areas which could prove to be obstacles in meeting the Government’s climate action plan targets. Firstly, there is the Government’s timeline in establishing the new Marine Area Regulatory Authority (MARA),

chain, and significant creation of jobs.” It is a model Ireland should look towards, she believes, with “industry and government working together from the outset to work through the potential blockages”.

Met Mast at Hornsea, UK developed by Mainstream, now the world’s largest offshore wind farm.

which is a key piece of the State’s new maritime planning legislation. As part of this, MARA will license large scale projects such as offshore wind farms and electricity interconnectors, planning approval for which will be handled by An Bord Pleanála. “Right now, the foreshore department is responsible for survey applications up to the 12 nautical mile limit, but there isn't any mechanism for projects located beyond that,” she highlights. “That is effectively prohibited until MARA is up and running. The Department has briefed that that will take 12 to 18 months at least to get MARA operational following the enactment of the legislation.” Mainstream supports Wind Energy Ireland’s call for interim measures to be including in the new Bill which would empower the Minister for Environment to grant survey licences beyond the 12 nautical mile limit until such time as MARA is established. How the proposed bill deals with the issues of design flexibility is also an area of concern for the wider industry, Quaney says. “What we are recommending and what works very well in other jurisdictions is a flexible design approach.” The Chief Executive refers to a system in Britain known as the “Rochdale envelope”, so named after two legal cases dealing with outline planning applications for a proposed business park in Rochdale.

“It allows developers, at the submission stage, to build flexibility into concepts for the outline of the wind farm ultimately,” she explains. “Again, in our experience, internationally, it's a very tried and trusted and solid approach that provides an appropriate level of flexibility without taking any further environmental risks.” Without such a provision, the resulting planning framework would emerge “very rigid”, and result in a process where developers have to reapply for consent if any elements of the design have changed or there have been technological improvements which can result in significant delays. If Ireland is to meet its climate targets, time is not on our side, so an efficient framework is vital. Earlier this year, the Irish Planning Institute welcomed the National Marine Planning Framework, but cautioned that it would place “significant resource demand” on “already over-stretched” planning authorities and An Bord Pleanála. “Ireland’s authorities need to be able to facilitate a smooth, transparent and efficient planning system “without delays”, given the volume of applications coming through,” says Quaney, explaining that England and Wales represent the most “mature” offshore market, run through The Crown Estate. Adding: “There is a very well established tried and tested planning system which has enabled an industry to be established in the UK, with a local supply

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“We have the opportunity to develop an industry sector to rival the ‘tech’ or the ‘pharma’ industries that have been so successful in Ireland.”

According to the Chief Executive, Britain’s approach also resulted in reducing the cost of developing offshore wind. “Now the UK offshore wind sector is the most advanced globally, and Mainstream has developed about 20 per cent of all of the offshore wind plant in construction and operations in the UK today,” she says. Mainstream’s offshore wind “heritage” dates to the 2003 commissioning of Ireland’s first offshore wind farm on the Arklow Bank by its predecessor Airtricity. “Since then, we have developed over five GW of offshore wind capacity and most of that is in UK waters,” says Quaney. “Today, we are developing offshore wind in Asia, we're developing south-east Asia's largest offshore wind farm in Vietnam, and we have a number of other offshore projects in Vietnam in development. “Then we're working on offshore projects in other geographies in Asia Pacific, in the Americas, and across Europe. I believe that we're probably one of the most experienced renewables developers active here in our home market, and being an Irish company, we're very proud of this.” The much bigger opportunity for Ireland is to export renewable energy to Europe. The ‘supergrid’ concept, pioneered by founder Eddie O’Connor and the technology under development by sister company SuperNode is “key to that”, according to Quaney. “Ireland needs to tap into the resources it has, with an unrivalled geographical position we may have taken for granted until now,” she concludes.

Contact Emmet Curley, Head of Communications T: +353 (0)86 2411 690 E: emmet.curley@maisntreamrp.com W: www.mainstreamrp.com

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Renewable heat obligation In August 2021, the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC) launched a consultation on the introduction of a renewable heat obligation. If introduced, the obligation will require that a proportion of the energy supplied to the Irish heat sector be from renewable sources. Annually, a total of 38 per cent of Ireland’s final energy consumption emanates from heat energy, equating to 55,230 GWh. With oil (42 per cent), gas (41 per cent) and solid fuels such as coal (5 per cent) and peat (4 per cent) still the primary sources of heat generation, emissions from the heat sector totalled 12.6 MtCO2 in 2019. Principally, heat energy is used across four sub-sectors: residential (46 per cent); industry (35 per cent); services (15 per cent); and agriculture and fisheries (4 per cent). While residential demand is the largest consumer of heat energy, usage is expected to decrease with improved energy efficiency.

than 2050, as per the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021;

Policy context Currently, Ireland’s climate ambitions include: •

•

a Programme for Government 2020 commitment to an average 7 per cent per annum reduction in greenhouse gas emissions (from 2021 to 2030), with a 51 per cent reduction by 2030, and achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050; a legally binding national climate objective of transitioning to a climate resilient, biodiversity-rich, environmentally sustainable and climate-neutral economy no later

•

a commitment to a 34.1 per cent share of renewable energy by 2030 via Ireland’s National Energy and Climate Plan 2021-2030; and

•

a reduction in European greenhouse gas (GHG emissions) by 55 per cent by 2030 through the EU’s Fit for 55 package.

At the same time, Article 23 of the Renewable Energy Directive (REDII) provides that EU member states must seek to “to increase the share of

renewable energy in that (heating and cooling) sector by an indicative 1.3 percentage points as an annual average calculated for the periods 2021 to 2025 and 2026 to 2030, starting from the share of renewable energy in the heating and cooling sector in 2020, expressed in terms of national share of final energy consumption. That increase shall be limited to an indicative 1.1 percentage points for member states where waste heat and cold is not used”.

Estimated cost of initial obligation (0.5 per cent) in the residential sector

In this context, contained within an updated annex to the Climate Action Plan 2019, Action 57b timetables a decision to be made on the introduction of a renewable heat obligation by the end of 2021.

Existing renewable heat measures Policy measures already implemented in support of the decarbonisation of the heat sector include: •

an update to building regulations to require that a share of the energy

Average heating consumption (11,000 kWh)

High heating consumption (13,000 kWh)

Low cost (€0.08/kWh)

0.5

€ 4.10

€ 4.99

€ 5.90

Medium Cost (€0.10/kWh)

0.5

€ 5.11

€ 6.24

€ 7.38

High Cost (€0.12/kWh)

0.5

€ 6.13

€ 7.49

€ 8.85

Estimated cost of 2030 minimum level obligation (3 per cent) in the residential sector

Climate Action Plan 2019

Though the structure of such an obligation has yet to be formally determined, all fuel suppliers, ranging from gas suppliers to local coal suppliers, would be subject to it. Likewise, as part of the consultation, any potential unintended consequences of a Renewable Heat Obligation on lower-income households will be assessed.

Low heating consumption (9,000 kWh)

Source: DECC

Amendments to Article 23 of REDII will ensure that the existing indicative 1.1 per cent annual increase in heating and cooling becomes a binding baseline for member states, with specific indicative national top-ups.

As such, the DECC consultation on a renewable heat obligation is intended to inform the decision on whether and how an obligation is implemented “in the coming years”.

Obligation rate (%) 2030

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In July 2021, the European Commission proposed revising the Renewable Energy Directive (REDII) to align with the delivery of the European Green Deal’s increased climate ambition. Overall, this revision will increase the EU-wide target for the renewable energy sources in the energy from 32 per cent to 40 per cent.

Additional cost of renewable fuel (year 1)

Additional cost of renewable fuel

Obligation rate (%) 2030

Low heating consumption (9,000 kWh)

Average heating consumption (11,000 kWh)

High heating consumption (13,000 kWh)

Low cost (€0.08/kWh)

€ 24.52

€ 29.96

€ 35.41

Medium Cost (€0.10/kWh)

€ 30.65

€ 37.46

€ 44.27

High Cost (€0.12/kWh)

€ 36.77

€ 44.95

€ 53.12

Source: DECC

demand in new buildings originates from renewable sources; and •

the provision of incentives to support domestic heat users in upgrading their energy efficiency.

Speaking at Energy Ireland 2021 on 15 September, Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Eamon Ryan TD stated: “In terms of heating, we will continue the rollout of heat pumps to replace fossil fuel heating systems, but we will also add an expanded role for district heating in the forthcoming Climate Action Plan. “SEAI is carrying out a detailed and comprehensive assessment of the decarbonisation of the heating sector in Ireland. This will be published over the coming months. As part of this study, it will indicate when we need to move from each of our fossil fuels for heat. This will inform future phasing out of fossil fuels and related appliances.”

Rationale However, a statement from the Department concedes that while “some progress is being made” in increasing renewable heat in Ireland, “more will need to be done”. This is an understatement given the failure to meet 12 per cent target for renewable heat (RES-H) by 2020. Indeed, only 6.3 per cent of Ireland’s heat sector demand is delivered by renewable energy sources. As well as being the lowest proportion of any EU member state, this is also significantly below the EU average renewables share of 22.1 per cent in 2019. Despite the aforementioned policy measures and the Climate Action Plan’s ambition to install 600,000 heat pumps in Irish homes by 2030, not enough progress has been made on increasing renewable heat in Ireland. At the same time, a renewable source of liquid and 4 67

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“Reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the heat sector though increased use of sustainable renewable energy thus contributing to the Programme for Government’s target of a 51 per cent reduction in emissions by 2030 and net zero emissions by 2050.” The overall objective of a renewable heat obligation, Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications gaseous fuels for heat will be required to decarbonise high temperature heat where electricity may not prove to be a practical alternative.

supplied, suppliers are already obligated by a demand-side measure, the Energy Efficiency Obligation Scheme, to reduce consumption.

The overall objective of a renewable heat obligation, therefore, is to reduce GHG emissions in the heat sector through increased use of renewable energy, contributing to the PfG’s target of a 51 per cent reduction in emissions by 2030 and net zero emissions by 2050. Simultaneously, an additional benefit flagged by the Department is diversification of the energy supply and therefore increased security of supply.

A renewable heat obligation will not be applied to electricity supplied for heat, as it already includes significant levels of renewable energy.

It is intended that if implemented, a renewable heat obligation will incentivise the use of renewable heat while also spreading across all nonrenewable energy sources. As such, the cost impact would be spread across all consumers of non-renewables, preventing a financial burden falling on a single sub-sector.

Proposed structure A renewable heat obligation is expected to mirror the Biofuels Obligation Scheme which operates in the transport sector, obligating fuel suppliers to ensure that a specific proportion of the fuel they supply for heat is renewable. It will apply to all suppliers of all fuels in the heat sector who supply more than 400 GWh of energy (as per the updated Energy Efficiency Obligation Scheme). While a renewable heat obligation would be a supply-side measure to reduce the carbon intensity of energy

The annual heat obligation rate will establish the proportion of nonrenewable energy supplied in the heat sector by each energy supplier (heat obligated party) that must emanate from renewable sources. Trading will be possible between suppliers providing an insufficient proportion of renewable energy and those suppliers with a surplus to the proportion required.

has outlined that while imported sustainable fuels will be accepted, “indigenously produced renewable energy will have less challenges meeting the sustainability criteria due to lower emissions associated with transportation”.

Cost An exact cost of meeting the renewable heat obligation has yet to be determined with any certainty. In producing its estimates, the Department assumes a typical residential heat consumption of between 11,000 kWh and 13,000 kWh and an additional cost of renewable fuel ranging from €0.03/kWh to €0.12/kWh. Therefore an 0.5 per cent heat obligation rate would add between €4 and €9 to an annual bill in the first year, increasing to between €24 and €54 by 2030 as per an obligation of 3 per cent. For industrial and commercial consumers, variable energy usage between SMEs and large industrial users means the additional cost will initially range from <0.75 per cent to <1.5 per cent before increasing to between <3 per cent and 6 per cent in 2030. It is anticipated that suppliers will source renewable fuels with the lowest associated cost to meet the obligations and spread additional cost across consumers equivalent to consumption.

Enforcement

This heat obligation rate is anticipated to “introduced as a low level and increased over the years ahead” in order for a supply of renewable energy to be established. For instance, in one scenario, the initial rate could be set at 0.5 per cent or the equivalent of around 260 GWh of renewable energy in 2019. By the end of the decade, the rate would be increased to at least 3 per cent, equating to a minimum of 1.6 TWh of renewable heat by 2030.

Enforcement of a renewable heat obligation will be the responsibility of “an appropriate government body/agency”. A decision on this administrator will be made following the conclusion of the public consultation. Working alongside the Department, the administrator will “develop the operating terms and conditions and to ensure the obligation complies with all relevant legal requirements such as State Aid”.

Sustainability

At the end of each obligation period, the administrator will ensure that suppliers have delivered enough renewable fuel to meet the renewable heat obligation. It is suggested that during the initial phase, the compliance of each supplier will be assessed over a multiyear period, while latterly it will be assessed on an annual basis.

The renewable heat obligation will adopt the sustainability criteria outlined by the Renewable Energy Directive and apply it to the renewable energy used. Potentially, this could incorporate biogas/biomethane, bioliquid, biomass and green hydrogen. The Department

Changing Times Changing Ways Elva Carbery, Legal Consultant

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Powering the economy sustainably

As the island of Ireland seeks to address the challenges of climate change, decarbonisation of the energy sector and the facilitation of greater levels of renewables are key components of the strategies developed by the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications in the Republic and the Department for the Economy in Northern Ireland. EPUK Investments (EP) is at the forefront of this ‘Just Transition’, with a plan to invest over £600 million in the development and operation of new flexible generation infrastructure that enables the island of Ireland to maximise electricity supplied from renewable energy. Here Ian Luney, Commercial Director, sets out how the company is already decarbonising the grid and investing significantly to develop new electricity generation assets which will play an integral part in meeting renewable and climate change targets, while also maintaining security of supply to support a post covid green economic recovery. The reliable supply of safe, affordable, and clean energy is essential for a thriving economy. At EP, we play a key role in this through generating the electricity which powers homes, businesses, hospitals, schools, 70

and transport across the island of Ireland.

decarbonisation and re-development of our operations on the island of Ireland.

EP is a subsidiary of the EPH Group, one of the largest power producers in Europe, employing over 25,000 people and operating an installed capacity of around 26.5GW; EPH is also a leader in carbon reduction, responsible for removing over 12 per cent of the EU’s carbon emissions off the system between 2014-2018. We plan to continue this story through the

EP currently has electricity generating assets in place at three strategically located sites at Tynagh, Ballylumford and Kilroot, which supply over 1,800MW to the grid. We are therefore a major, strategic part of the Irish energy market. To continue our efforts towards decarbonisation, our plans go beyond decommissioning as we seek to develop new infrastructure to provide sources of

zero or low carbon emission dispatchable generation to further facilitate the progress to zero emissions.

In 2019, EP entered the Irish energy market, in June acquiring the Kilroot and Ballylumford power stations in Northern Ireland, and in October of the same year, acquiring the majority shareholding in the Tynagh Combined Cycle Gas Turbine power plant near Galway. From this point, EP has focused on the optimisation and redevelopment of these strategic sites, formally committing to take coal off the system in 2023 and developing plans for new energy investment opportunities.

Kilroot Energy Park EP’s proposed Kilroot Energy Park represents the largest single investment in electricity generation in Northern Ireland, with a range of renewable energy technologies and electricity generation solutions proposed. These include plans for new flexible dispatchable generation, battery storage, solar, EV charging, a multi-fuel CHP facility, a hydrogen facility, and a data centre. The EP vision has the potential to generate at least 600MW of lower carbon and renewable energy, which is enough to power over 500,000 homes.

The transition from coal to clean, flexible gas will ensure that the site continues to provide that essential security of electricity supply for Northern Ireland. Importantly, the flexible nature of the OCGT technology enables greater utilisation of renewable energy generation on the grid and reduce curtailment. This new clean gas generation at Kilroot will be highly responsive and efficient, meaning that more wind generation and other intermittent renewables can be used on the grid with greater ease and more often than is currently possible. The requirement for this type of generation has been brought into sharp focus over recent months with increasing concerns around security of electricity supply. If we are to effectively manage the energy transition and meet climate change targets without jeopardising security of supply, new flexible dispatchable gas generation will play a critical role, and EP’s investment will be the first to deliver this on the island of Ireland.

The emergence of hydrogen

The investment in the site would also create hundreds of jobs and mark an historic milestone in the decarbonisation of electricity generation in Northern Ireland.

Hydrogen has the potential to play a pivotal role in the future because it can be used to create, store, and transport energy from wind, solar and other renewable sources to power and heat homes, businesses, vehicles and more.

The transition from coal to clean, flexible gas

EP is proposing to build a hydrogen facility at one of our sites, which will produce hydrogen gas from water through the process of electrolysis. The hydrogen produced by the electrolysers can then be compressed and used on site or transported for use by other consumers. There are various uses for hydrogen including electricity generation, hydrogen vehicles, injection into the gas grid or for various other industrial applications.

The first phase of the plan for the Kilroot site is the replacement of the existing coal fired generation plant with flexible, lower carbon gas fired open cycle gas turbine (OCGT) technology. For many years, the coal fired generating plant at Kilroot has provided a strategic and important source of electricity for homes and businesses.

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Over the past number of years, EP has demonstrated a strong track record in the development, construction, and operation of power generation projects across the UK and Ireland. Recent examples have included the repowering of Lynemouth Power Station, which was converted from coal to biomass following a £300 million investment and is now the largest biomass-only facility in the UK, and a £53 million investment in South Humber Bank Power Station to improve the efficiency of the station, reduce its carbon emissions and extend its life.

“The EP vision has the potential to generate at least 600MW of lower carbon and renewable energy, which is enough to power over 500,000 homes. The investment in the site would also create hundreds of jobs and mark an historic milestone in the decarbonisation of electricity generation in Northern Ireland.” We are committed to playing our part in the development of the emerging hydrogen sector which would allow Ireland and Northern Ireland to maximise the benefits of our high levels of renewable generation.

Data centre development EP has recently announced the commissioning of expert research into the development of a major data centre on the site of the Kilroot Power Station by TechRE, an experienced specialist data centre consultancy. The development of a data centre at Kilroot will support jobs, drive innovation, and bring investment to the area. It is well known that data centres need to be close to sources of electricity generation, so the Kilroot site (with onsite generation and grid access for potential off-shore renewable technologies) is perfectly suited for this use and EP is committed to further explore the scalability of new technologies at each of our sites and diversify our investment portfolio to support the local economy.

Investing in a sustainable future EP has an exciting pipeline of projects planned for the coming years with a willingness to invest and track record of delivery. We are looking forward to continuing to develop our sites in across the island of Ireland to realise our vision for powering a sustainable future.

For more information: T: +44 (0) 28 9335 6206 E: Ian.luney@epuki.co.uk W: www.epuki.co.uk; www.kilrootenergypark.com 71

renewable energy magazine

Power to green hydrogen: Green Hysland Power to Green Hydrogen Mallorca.

Enagás’s María Jaén discusses the deployment of green hydrogen to decarbonise an island economy. Jaén is the general coordinator of the project Green Hsyland and she works in the Innovation and Renewable Gases Department at Enagás. Enagás is the main gas TSO in Spain and the technical manager of the Spanish gas system, with a presence in eight countries across the world. As part of its commitment to energy transition and decarbonisation, three years ago Enagás created the Innovation and Renewable Gases Division. In particular, the organisation recognised the potential of biomethane and green hydrogen, produced from renewable sources and usable across multiple applications. “Making use of existing gas infrastructure is paramount for an affordable transition,” says Jaén. As a focus of this commitment, Enagás founded Enagás Renovable in 2019, which will promote development projects associated with green 72

hydrogen and biomethane. The company is leading the Western Route of the Hydrogen IPCEI Green Crane initiative, a programme to create southto-north green hydrogen routes across Europe. “The initiative aims to connect competitive green hydrogen with demand centres, paving the way for future EU cross-border and import routes. This will boost local hydrogen demand in regional hubs and help decarbonise those gas end-use sectors,” explains Jaén. In the context of the IPCEI initiative, Enagás Renovable is developing more than 30 hydrogen projects, the majority of which are in Spain.

Mallorca Among these projects is the Hub Baleares: Power to Green Hydrogen Mallorca initiative, which will see the production of green hydrogen for

multiple applications, including injection into the natural gas grid. “The Green Hysland project is the production of green hydrogen from photovoltaic solar energy, for various applications and injection into the gas network,” states Jaén. Outlining its origins, Jaén explains that the project began with the announcement that a major industry player on the island of Mallorca was to close its cement plant. This initiative is part of an agreement between the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism and the Balearic Government with Enagás, Acciona, CEMEX and Redexis to reindustrialise Lloseta (Mallorca). The project includes the development of a green hydrogen production plant from renewable photovoltaic energy. The green hydrogen generated will have multiple applications on the island, including the fuel supply to a fleet of fuel cell buses and fuel cell vehicles, the

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H2 ecosystem concept.

generation of heat and power for commercial and public buildings, the supply of auxiliary power for ferries and port operations and the creation of a hydrogen refuelling station (HRS).

receives support from the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme, Hydrogen Europe, and Hydrogen Europe Research.

The project also includes green hydrogen injection into the island’s gas pipeline network, through a Guarantee of Origin System, to decarbonise the gas supply.

A concept of the project points to the multiple application of green hydrogen from PV parks in Lloseta and Petra including a hydrogen refuelling station at the EMT bus depot in Palma; a commercial fuel cell-based CHP system in a hotel in Palma; a fuel cell and hydrogen (FCH) primary power system for a ferry terminal in the port of Parma; injection of hydrogen into the local gas distribution grid in Cas Tresorer; and a fuel cell-based CHP system within a municipal building in Lloseta.

In May 2019, the Balearic Government approved the declaration of the Power to Green Hydrogen Mallorca project as a strategic industrial project. Outlining why Mallorca is a prime location for the project, Jaén highlights three main reasons: 1. Mallorca only has a permanent population of one million people; however, the island receives about 16 million tourists per year, mostly in summer. Jaén says that the island provided the perfect platform to demonstrate that hydrogen can play a key role in the energy system. 2. Mallorca, with an electricity mix largely based on fossil fuels, has a strong commitment to be zero emissions by 2040. 3. Mallorca already has an island-wide natural gas grid in place, meaning the injection of hydrogen into the existing grid would be easier, making it a perfect location to develop hydrogen ecosystems. The Green Hysland project receives funding from the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen 2 joint undertaking, which

Jaén explains that the project began in 2021 and is funded for completion in 2025 with an estimated total investment of €50 million. From the outset the Lloseta Green Hydrogen plant will generate 330 tonnes of hydrogen per year, but Jaén explains the ambition is to see this scaled up to 1,000 tonnes per year and to extend the eco-system into further uses throughout the island. Jaén outlines a number of benefits associated to the project, including: • mitigating a carbon footprint of more than 21,000 tonnes annually when the project produces 1,000 tonnes of hydrogen per year; • a new direct and indirect employment ecosystem associated with hydrogen;

• the development of a sustainable large-scale island-based hydrogen hub in Mallorca; • the development of a long-term roadmap to lay the path for a local and regional based economy towards 2050; and • scalability and replicability. On the topic of replicability, Jaén explains that the development of replication experiences and business models are foreseen in five other EU islands, including Oileáin Árann and Valentia in Ireland, Madeira in Portugal, Tenerife in Spain, Ameland in Netherlands and Greek Islands, as well as on the island of Chiloé in Chile and in Morocco. The Green Hysland demonstrations will also provide Europe with a blueprint for decarbonisation of island economies, and an operational example of the contribution of hydrogen towards the energy transition and the 2050 net zero targets. “This project will deliver a roadmap towards 2050 that compiles a long-term vision for the development of a widespread hydrogen economy in Mallorca and the Balearic region, in line with the environmental objectives set for 2050,” she says. Jaén also highlighted: “Hydrogen will help to increase the penetration of renewable energy in the Balearic energy system, demonstrating sector coupling and sectorial integration, and moving towards full decarbonisation of the economy”. 73

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At Calor, we aren’t just on a mission, we are leading one

Calor Ireland, the leading supplier of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) and BioLPG in Ireland has committed to be a net zero carbon energy supplier by 2037, over a decade ahead of the Government target for Ireland’s energy supply. Calor, which has been supplying energy in Ireland for over 80 years, became the first supplier on the island of Ireland to offer customers certified renewable LPG, BioLPG, for homes and businesses in 2018. In doing so, Calor began an important journey to carbon neutral energy supply by 2037. Speaking on its commitment to a sustainable future for all, Calor CEO, Duncan Osborne explains how Calor is looking to continually evolve, innovate and expand its renewable product offerings. “At Calor, we aren’t just on a mission,

we are leading one. This is only the beginning”, states Osborne. “Calor is renewing its sustainability ambition; so by 2025, 25 per cent of our sales will be renewable. That means that one quarter of our sales will be delivering up to 90 per cent* carbon savings.” Calor BioLPG, a certified renewable gas, has offered customers a low carbon option since 2018. The renewable gas, BioLPG, has already proven a hit with homeowners and businesses that are looking to shift to a cleaner option. At the launch of BioLPG, Calor set a very ambitious target by aiming for 10 per cent of all its gas sold in Ireland to be renewable by the end of 2021. Calor are set to achieve this target, a fantastic achievement for this renewable gas in the three years since launch. “Building on the success of BioLPG, our 100 per cent renewable gas in liquid form, which is helping larger energy

users in rural Ireland reduce their carbon emissions, Calor will continue to look at other technologies and partnerships to cement our future in renewable products. This approach will enable Calor to achieve its goal of being 100 per cent renewable by 2037,” states Osborne. “That is significantly ahead of EU and Irish targets. We want to help lead this transition. To support the companies and homeowners who want to make a difference but aren’t sure how to. We know our customers are engaged by sustainability issues, our job is to help lead them to a cleaner energy supply. “The coming months will also see increased focus on sustainability and renewable energy. With the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP26 on the horizon, we know that domestic and business customers will increasingly be looking for cleaner energy options in 2021 and 2022.”

For more information on Calor BioLPG, visit calorgas.ie/biolpg *The CO2 savings are calculated for 100 per cent blend. The level of CO2 savings may vary per production batch as it can be impacted by the feedstock used for production.

Credit: Aparajita Banerjee

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Renewable energy acceptance University College Dublin’s Geertje Schuitema discusses the importance of a bottom-up approach to renewable energy development in securing community acceptance.

Discussing current levels of community acceptance to renewable energy development in Ireland, Schuitema points to a mindset shift which appears to be moving away from an automatic perception of community acceptance being linked to objection, to one of greater support. On the definition of acceptance, she says: “The reality is that social acceptance of energy is not a fixed measurement and in fact, is dynamic. Attempts to gauge social acceptance of renewable energy 76

development often fail to recognise that not only can overall attitudes change but attitudes to certain aspects, components or technology can also change.”

and for which An Bord Pleanála consented planning for Derryadd Wind Farm in June 2020, including the development of 24 wind turbines.

Instead, Schuitema believes it more efficient to not gauge the acceptance levels of renewable energy development but instead to analyse under which conditions are people more willing to accept certain types of renewable energy development and the process that underpins it.

Setting the context for the research, the academic points out the potential broader social implications for the local community in relation to the closures, not least on workers, their families, their households, and the wider community.

Such analysis was the aim of Schuitema and her research team in a recent project conducted in the Midlands, a key area of focus in the current energy transition. In 2018, Bord na Móna announced its decision to close 17 active bogs by 2020 and the remaining 45 within seven years. In 2018, the Midlands Regional Transition Team (MRTT), established in response to the acceleration of Bord na Móna’s decarbonisation programme, estimated the loss of 2,000 direct jobs and a further 2,000 indirect jobs. Schuitema’s research project focused on Lanesborough, County Longford an area where peat production ended this year

As well as a focus on the perception by workers of the transition process, the prepandemic study also looked at how the wider community viewed the development of their region, as part of the transition, and how acceptable they found different proposals to develop country. Schuitema explains that initial research in the area through a series of interviews painted a picture of little support for the planned development of wind turbines and wind energy in the area. Instead, they were met with proposals which included support for a wilderness park or for solar energy development. “These bottom-up proposals, where the community themselves had thought about how to best develop up the region,

enabled us to develop a survey whereby we compared the existing proposals (described as a top-down proposal) to an alternative development mooted by the community (bottom-up proposal).”

Explaining the survey, the academic says: “We wanted to assess which of the developments were more acceptable to the local community, but we also wanted to understand the reason that there might have been a difference in acceptance levels, recognising that bottom-up developments often may not fit with the national plan or be realistic, for various reasons. It was important to understand the underlying motivations.”

1 bottom-up

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The survey was an evaluation of two potential future developments. The bottom-up proposal was for a MidShannon wilderness park with solar panels compared to the Derryadd wind farm proposal. Given the remoteness of the area, a paper-and-pencil survey was conducted in the Lanesborough community in February 2020. A total of 181 people took part in the survey which had a 31.9 per cent response rate.

Feelings of control

top-down

Place-technology fit 5

1 bottom-up economic

top-down social

environmental

cultural

Understandably, acceptance levels for the bottom-up proposal were above that of the top-down development. Schuitema acknowledges that such a finding does not factor in feasibility or linkage with national ambitions, however, the study also highlighted that one of the main reasons for greater acceptance of the bottom-up process was an element of control. Schuitema says: “The findings are an illustration that people very much like to feel heard and to feel like they have control over the decisions that are taken within their community. Keep in mind that this is a community that already has fears over the closure of peat power plants and so they already have experience of decisions being made on their behalf. In relation to development, there is evidence that communities want influence.” A further aspect explored by the team was in relation to psychological ownership, which refers to a collective feeling that a development belongs to a community. Psychological ownership does not have to include physical ownership but is more about ownership of the concept. Again, a bottom-up approach, when compared to a top-down approach, provoked a stronger feeling of psychological ownership over a project. “The finding that greater levels of ownership are provided by a bottom-up approach is important when you consider the first RESS auction’s inclusion of seven community projects and ambitions

to increase this further in later auctions. Public buy-in to the energy transition is a critical ambition of Ireland’s decarbonisation agenda and increased acceptance through bottom-up approaches to renewable energy development should be given consideration,” Schuitema says.

“It showed that the way people were

Finally, the research sought to explore the two hypothetical projects, with their different approaches, fitted with the community. The question was asked within the four dimensions of economic, social, environmental, and cultural, and as the findings below show, in each dimension, the bottom-up project approach was assessed as more fitting.

signify the key elements are:

•

use of fair and just procedures; and

Schuitema concludes: “The context of the study is important. We have an area where a just transition plan is in place but at the same time, it was clear that people in that area did not always feel that that plan matched with their own ideas of that it fitted them.

•

stimulating and building on

treated in terms of a just transition was a pre-condition for how acceptable they felt renewable energy developments were.” Posing the question: Under which condition is renewable energy acceptable, Schuitema says that the research would

•

allowing influence in the decisionmaking process and change;

•

building a sense of collective ownership of project and alignment with community identity;

community led approaches is a mean to achieve this. Geertje Schuitema’s research is currently under review in the British Journal of Social Psychology. 77

Ocean Winds enter Irish offshore market with a combined 2,300MW bottom-fixed projects

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“The Irish Government has acknowledged its geographic and climatic advantages with ambitious targets to achieve 5GW of installed offshore wind capacity by 2030, and is delivering public policy proposals to support this. We look forward to playing an important part as trusted partner in enabling Ireland to achieve its 2030 and wider Net Zero ambitions with this and future projects”. Commenting, Andronikos Kafas, the New Offshore Wind Opportunities Manager of Ocean Winds says: “Our application for a Foreshore Licence marks our entry to a new market while the new competitive regulatory regime is being established. We look forward to presenting attractive, high-quality, highly competitive proposals, and creating new opportunities for local enterprises at the cutting edge of renewable technology.

Moray East project located in the outer Moray Firth, Scotland.

Ocean Winds (OW) announced its entry to the Irish offshore wind market in March 2021 with proposals for the bottom-fixed Cailleach Offshore Windfarm in the Irish Sea. The Cailleach project is a 317km2 site, 13km from shore at Braehead in County Wicklow, and is expected to deliver up to 1,600MW, followed by a second project in May, Celtic Horizon, a 141.45km2 site, c.13.5km from mainland Wexford and Waterford counties, of which both is set to deliver low-cost, low-carbon energy renewable energy to Ireland by 2030. This will further expand the geographically diverse OW portfolio, which includes 1,500MW offshore wind generation under construction and 4,000MW in development across Europe, the USA and Asia. Commenting, OW CEO Spyridron Martinis says: “OW has a strong international portfolio and an excellent track-record of bringing projects from

concept to construction. Ireland has excellent renewable resources, and our background, expertise, strength and experience will allow the Irish economy to make best use of those resources.” Adding to this, Dan Finch, UK and Ireland Country Manager of Ocean Winds says: “With more than a decade’s experience, OW brings a history of project deliverability and cost reduction. This includes bringing the world-leading Moray East Offshore Windfarm in Scotland from concept to construction. We have a track record of using our strength as global leaders in the renewables sector to create opportunities for local companies who want to expand and diversify into the emerging offshore wind sector.

“Our proposals will be available for inspection at public information events which will be advertised in the next few months, subject to the evolving Covid-19 situation”. OW will further extend its ambitions to other potential sites in Ireland, employing its extensive experience to deliver high-standard projects and in working with local suppliers where possible, promoting local market and supply chain growth.

Ocean Winds UK Ltd 144 Morrison St, Edinburgh OW UK press office +44 7584 608842 W: www.oceanwinds.com

Grid-scale battery storage development

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Over 2.5GW of grid-scale battery storage is in development in Ireland, with six projects currently operational in the country, four of which were added in 2021.

The operational use of the already-installed capacity of grid-scale battery storage was displayed in May 2021, when the frequency of Ireland’s electricity grid dropped below normal operating range. Two of the country’s six large-scale battery storage projects were called upon to help and had injected power into the network within 180 milliseconds, stabilising the network.

The largest part of the pipeline in Ireland is

The 11MW system at Kilathmoy, the Republic’s first grid-scale battery energy storage system (BESS) project, and the 26MW Kelwin-2 system, both built by Norwegian power company Statkraft, responded to the event, which was the longest under-frequency event in recent years. The electricity grid went out of bounds of 49.9Hz – 50.1Hz for more than 14 minutes.

2019. By the end of 2021, there is projected

Battery storage can offer a source of support to the electricity grid, enabling the addition of more wind and solar power over time. The Irish energy system today is using gas or coal power plants for energy purposes, rather than as a means of providing support services to the grid. This means that wind power plants are then prevented from providing electricity to the grid to make way for those thermal resources. Enabling emissions-free methods such as battery storage for the provision of these services instead would facilitate the use of renewable energy in several different ways. Despite the fact that energy storage is regarded as relatively new in Ireland, the 2020 goal of 40 per cent renewable electricity and energy storage project developers have been successful in winning contracts in EirGrid’s DS3 market. The DS3 has procured 14 different network ancillary services under a fixed tariff regime, although it is due to expire in three years. However, demand for grid service assets such as battery storage is likely to multiply, necessitating the provision of a DS3 type scheme from 2024 onwards. A pipeline of over 2.5GW of grid-scale battery projects has now emerged in Ireland, with capacity projections increasing by 25 per cent in recent years. Over 75 per cent of this pipeline is made up of standalone projects, but increased interest in the possibility of colocation with solar and wind projects has been reported since 2018, although these are smaller in capacity. 80

made up of projects larger than 20MW, the majority of them standalone. The DS3 scheme has so far favoured larger projects, with two 30MW projects and one 50MW securing DS3 Volume Capped Contracts in to be 350MW operational on the market. A further group of projects, totalling circa 250MW have both planning permission and grid connection contracts, is ready to progress, with the potential for their construction in either 2021 or 2022. The largest category of projects are those with planning consented, totalling over 1.4GW in operational capacity. Planning for battery storage projects is a typically shorter process than the equivalent for wind and solar projects, with the next step for those with planning consent an application to the ESB or EirGrid for grid connection. The ESB states that it “aims to develop a pipeline of projects to deliver large scale batteries as well as additional flexible enabling technologies” and has so far announced the development of its first major battery projects at existing sites in Inchicore, Dublin and Aghada, Cork. These projects will deliver 60 MWh at Inchicore and 38 MWh at Aghada Generating Station, with the ESB also planning to develop further battery storage projects in South Wall and Poolbeg, both in Dublin.

Nidec (Leroy-Somer) trading under GES

organisation, the company provide power,

Automation (IRL) have completed our 2nd

energy and drivetrain solutions for SMEs and

“We are delighted with the opportunity to extend our all-Ireland market and with ambitious plans through collaboration within our industry. That said we want to identify and tackle the underlying issues, such as digital skills and innovation through outreach with our new and existing clients, which is an excellent example of our focus on delivering and implementing actions to address the key challenges facing our future development in the motor and drive digital energy revolution”.

quarter under the new structure and have had a

large multi-nationals across a range of

wonderful introduction to our client base.

industries UK, Ireland and beyond. The group

David Moore, CEO GES Group

ISO 9001

ISO 14001

OHSAS 18001

Registered

Quality Management

Environmental Management

Health & Safety Management

have strong and long-standing trading history We are reaching out to grow the market with a

extending in growth across a significant

host of new and highly efficient range of

number of industry sectors, in their drive to

products presently stocked in our Newbridge

develop the Nidec (Leroy-Somer) motor market

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renewable energy magazine

New Climate Action Plan key to EV uptake In Ireland, 20 per cent of new car sales will be EVs by 2023, but the ambition to have one million EVs on roads by the end of the decade may be reliant on postpandemic purchasing behaviours. The Climate Action Plan’s target of almost one million EVs on Irish roads by 2030 will require a significant uplift in new car purchases, which figures show have been hit by the pandemic. The number of electric vehicles sold in Ireland doubled in the first half of 2021 compared to the same period the previous year, but the number of overall new vehicles purchased remains over 20 per cent lower than pre-Covid levels. Despite the significant uptick in new EVs, meaning a market share reduction for new diesel and petrol vehicles, a reduction in overall sales of new

vehicles, largely attributed to the pandemic, means that EV penetration will need to significantly increase if Ireland is to reach the Government’s one million target by the end of the decade. Statistics from the Society of the Irish Motor Industry for the first half of 2021 show that while the majority of new cars sold still tend to be diesel (36 per cent) and petrol (32 per cent), 8,498 EVs sold to the end of June 2021 represents a 178 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2020. Of these 4,333 were EVs and 4,165

were plug-in hybrid EVs (PHEVs). New car sales in Ireland are estimated to be around 100,000 for 2021, rising to 125,000 for 2022. The pandemic has disrupted usual trends in new car sales and despite evident signs of recovery in the form of rising levels of purchasing from 2020, the number of new cars being sold still remains below the 150,000 average figure which most anticipated. If new car sales remain at these levels, then EVs would need to achieve almost 100 per cent penetration if the 2030 target is to be reached.

Fuel type market share 2020 vs 2021 50% 45% 40% 35% 30% 25%

renewable energy magazine

20% 15% 10% 5% 0% Diesel

Petrol

Hybrid 2020

Electric

Plugin hybrid electric

2021

Source: SIMI Motorstats

It is possible that the Government’s target was consciously overly ambitious, providing the catalyst needed to kickstart the transition to more renewable private transport. As well as an ambitious target and a commitment to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030, a number of factors appear to have played a role in a greater number of consumers opting for EVs over traditional petrol or diesel fuelled new vehicles. Environmental awareness has undoubtedly increased in recent years and the pandemic appears to have served as an opportunity for citizens to evaluate their behaviours and patterns. Additionally, the EV market has evolved with more manufacturers committing to EV production and eventual transition away from fossil-fuelled vehicles. This has led to greater choice for consumers but also faster development of technology, meaning vehicle driving range is increasing significantly. Supplementing this easing of ‘range anxiety’ fears of EV drivers or prospective drivers is the extensive enhancement of Ireland’s public EV charging network. ESB operates and maintains over 1,350 public charge points across the island of Ireland through ESB ecars. The Government’s Climate Action Fund provided €10

“The number of electric vehicles sold in Ireland doubled in the first half of 2021 compared to the same period the previous year, but the number of overall new vehicles purchased remains over 20 per cent lower than pre-Covid levels.” million, matched by ESB, to expand and enhance the public charging network. This has enhanced not only the reliability of the network but also introduced some rapid chargers in towns and cities throughout Ireland.

on-street public charge point scheme

The Government has also taken some steps in a bid to enhance the uptake of electric vehicles, however, many feel that the upcoming Climate Action Plan must provide more extensive incentivisation if Ireland is to reach its target. Recent government initiatives include regulation changes on new and existing buildings beyond dwellings to ensure recharging point installation, an

2021 government support was re-

for local authorities, seeking to remove uptake barriers for those without home charging, benefit-in-kind tax relief for battery electric vehicles, grant support for the private purchase of EVs (in April refocused to prioritise battery electric cars) and an Electric Vehicle Home Charger Grant. With levels of new vehicle purchases below predicted levels, the Government has an opportunity to re-stimulate the market through the incentivisation of EV take up in the coming years.

renewable energy magazine

RESS-2 to define Ireland’s solar ambitions With Ireland set to ramp up its decarbonisation ambitions through the forthcoming Climate Action Plan, the size of the role solar PV has to play in 2030 targets will largely be defined by RESS-2. If 2020 was recognised as a major breakthrough for the solar PV in Ireland, then 2021/22 will undoubtedly shape its deployment over the next decade. The trend of Solar PV generation in Ireland since 2014 is one of rapid growth, however, given its low base start, Solar PV still makes up a relatively small percentage of overall renewable electricity generation. The awarding of 63 contracts to solar projects, totalling over 1,000MW (767.3 GWh), during the 2020 RESS-1 auction marked the first major move of solar farms into Ireland’s renewable energy mix and represented a clear signal from government that it valued the role of solar PV in Ireland’s decarbonisation ambitions. However, how much emphasis the Government puts on the solar PV

contribution will be defined by RESS-2, the next auction being planned by government to take place at the end of 2021 or beginning of 2022. Additionally, the forthcoming Climate Action Plan, expected to increase the decarbonisation of its 2019 predecessor, will go some way to outlining solar PV generation targets and defining investor confidence in the market. While the Government has indicated its support for the solar industry, it has been slow to act on some of the rhetoric. The Programme for Government pledges to expand and incentivise microgeneration, including rooftop solar energy. There is also a pledge within to develop a Solar Energy Strategy for rooftop and ground-based photovoltaics, “to ensure that a greater share of our electricity needs is met

through solar power”. The conclusion of the review of the current planning exemptions relating to solar panels, to “ensure that households, schools, and communities can be strong champions of climate action” was also signposted. Action 30 of the 2019 Climate Action Plan states that a support payment for excess electricity generated and exported to the grid will be available to all Irish micro-generators by late 2021, “whilst ensuring principles of equity, self-consumption and energy efficiency first are incorporated”; this payment mechanism has yet to be finalised, although the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications (DCCAE) began consultation on such a scheme in January 2021. The consultation, which closed in February, looked to build on the Economic Assessment of

The SEAI report estimates that there were 24.2MW of installed solar PV capacity in Ireland in 2018, split between 17.7MW in the residential sector and 6.5MW in the commercial/industrial sector. This amount in the residential sector is mostly made up of solar PV installed in new homes to meet the requirements of the building regulations for use of energy from renewable sources, with estimates of installed capacity of solar PV on new dwellings based on the BER database. Electric Ireland, the report notes, “voluntarily offered a domestic microgeneration rate of €0.09 per kWh for micro-generation exported to the grid, including domestic solar PV”. This rate will continue to be paid to existing participants until the end of 2020, but the scheme has been closed to new entrants since the end of 2014. In 2018, SEAI estimated that 16.7 GWh of electricity was generated from solar PV, representing 0.1 per cent of renewable electricity and 0.04 per cent of electricity gross final consumption. The report states that “in spite of its small contribution in 2018, solar PV is already growing rapidly”. By mid-2018, there were 245MW of installed capacity contracted for connection to the transmission grid; this had increased to 706MW by the end of 2019. The SEAI also states that there is “likely to be continuing growth in the residential sector due to the renewables

0.08 0.07 0.06 0.05 0.04 0.03

renewable energy magazine

According to the latest SEAI report, Renewable Energy in Ireland 2020, 66 per cent of renewable energy in 2018 came from renewable electricity, with renewable energy accounting for 11 per cent of gross final consumption. Ireland has a legally binding target of the latter figure being at 16 per cent for 2020. Solar photovoltaics accounted for 0.1 per cent of renewable electricity, illustrating the small role solar has thus far played in Ireland’s renewable energy developments.

Solar contribution to gross electricity consumption (RES-E normalised) 2014-2019

Renewable Technologies undertaken to support the RESS, which was commissioned by DCCAE in 2017. The assessment found that challenges around microgeneration needed to be identified and addressed in order to support its rollout and to aid Ireland in its goal of reaching 70 per cent renewable electricity by 2030 as was outlined in the 2019 Climate Action Plan, a goal that will only increase if it is to be changed in the forthcoming plan.

0.02 0.01 0 2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

“66 per cent of renewable energy in 2018 came from renewable electricity, with renewable energy accounting for 11 per cent of gross final consumption. Ireland has a legally binding target of the latter figure being at 16 per cent for 2020. Solar photovoltaics accounted for 0.1 per cent of renewable electricity, illustrating the small role solar has thus far played in Ireland’s renewable energy efforts.”

requirement in the building regulations for new dwellings and also due to the introduction of a capital grant for domestic solar PV in existing dwellings”. Solar power is the fastest-growing source for renweable electricity in Europe according to Eurostat: in 2008, it accounted for 1 per cent but now stands for 13 per cent. This means that the growth in electricity from solar power has been dramatic, rising from just 7.4 TWh in 2008 to 125.7 TWh in 2019. This shows the potential for the solar PV market that exists in Ireland, with Ireland being regarded as coming late

to the game when compared with exemplars such as the Netherlands, Denmark and Germany. Worries abound that Ireland will become a less attractive market for private investors looking to play their part in the solar market if frictions such as a lack of support are not addressed. With 1,900MW, or 1,800 GWh, of solar power potentially to be part of the RESS-2 auction and the forthcoming Climate Action Plan expected to lay out policy plans for the technology, the Government has the opportunity to allay these fears and begin the process of matching the solar growth seen throughout Europe.

renewable energy magazine

Renewable energy companies and organisations The following is an A-Z list of renewable energy players including industry associations, indigenous energy companies, wind developers and other organisations. Government departments and agencies Action Renewables Dublin Office Innovation Campus, Old Finglas Road Glasnevin, Dublin Tel: 01 695 0743 Web: www.actionrenewables.ie Email: info@actionrenewables.ie Belfast Office Boucher Business Studios Glenmachan Place, Belfast, BT12 6QH Tel: +44 (0)28 9072 7760 Web: www.actionrenewables.co.uk Email: info@actionrenewables.co.uk Chief Executive Officer: Terry Waugh Bord na Móna Main Street Newbridge Co Kildare, W12 XR59 Tel: +353 45 439 000 Web: www.bordnamona.ie CEO: Tom Donnellan

COFORD Council c/o Forest Sector Development Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine Johnston Castle Estate Wexford, Y35 PN52 Tel: +353 53 917 0322 Web: www.coford.ie Email: fsd@agriculture.gov.ie Coillte Dublin Road Newtownmountkennedy Co Wicklow, A63 DN25 Tel: 189 0367 378 Web: www.coillte.ie CEO: Imelda Hurley Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) The Grain House, The Exchange Belgard Square North, Tallaght Dublin 24, D24 PXW0 Tel: 01 4000 800 Web: www.cru.ie Email: info@cru.ie Commissioner: Aoife MacEvilly (Chair) Commissioner: Paul McGowan Commissioner: Jim Gannon

Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC) 29-31 Adelaide Road Dublin 2, D02 X285 Tel: 01 678 2000 Web: www.decc.gov.ie Email: customer.services@decc.gov.ie Minister: Eamon Ryan TD Secretary General: Mark Griffin Assistant Secretary, Energy: Matthew Collins Assistant Secretary General, Environment and Climate Action: Brian Carroll Assistant Secretary, Natural Resources and Waste Policy: Philip Nugent International and Offshore Energy, Principal: Martin Finucane Business Energy and Gas Policy, Principal: Kevin Brady Electricity Policy, Principal: Eamonn Confrey Department for the Economy (Northern Ireland) Netherleigh, Massey Avenue Belfast, BT4 2JP Tel: +44 (0)28 9052 9900 Web: www.economy-ni.gov.uk Email: dfemail@economy-ni.gov.uk

Minister: Gordon Lyons MLA Permanent Secretary: Mike Brennan Head of Energy: Richard Rodgers Energy Strategy and Sustainability: Thomas Byrne Energy Markets and EU Relations: Joe Reynolds (acting) Heat, Minerals and Operations: Graham Miller

Gas Networks Ireland Gasworks Road Cork, T12 RX96 Tel: 021 453 4000 Web: www.gasnetworks.ie Managing Director: Denis O’Sullivan Invest Northern Ireland Bedford Square Bedford Street Belfast, BT2 7ES Tel: +44 (0)28 9069 8000 Web: www.investni.com Email: eo@investni.com Chief Executive: Kevin Holland Marine Institute Rinville, Oranmore Co Galway, H91 R673 Tel: 091 387 200 Web: www.marine.ie Email: institute.mail@marine.ie CEO: Paul Connolly National Standards Authority of Ireland 1 Swift Square, Northwood, Santry Dublin 9, D09 A0E4 Tel: +353 1 807 3800 Web: www.nsai.ie Email: info@nsai.ie Ordnance Survey Ireland Phoenix Park Dublin 8, D08 F6E4 Tel: 01 802 5300 Web: www.osi.ie Email: kevin.brady@osi.ie Contact: Kevin Brady

Engineers Ireland 22 Clyde Road, Ballsbridge Dublin, D04 R3N2 Tel: 01 665 1300 Web: www.engineersireland.ie President: Maurice Buckley Director General: Caroline Spillane

Chief Executive Officer: William Walsh Emerging Sectors: Declan Meally Business and Public Sector: Fergus Sharkey Delivery: John Randles Data and Insights: Jim Scheer Development: John O’Sullivan Communications: Tom Halpin Research and Technology: Kerrie Sheehan

Geothermal Association of Ireland Secretariat c/o SLR (Environmental) Consulting Ireland Ltd 7 Dundrum Business Park Windy Arbour, Dublin 14 Tel: 01 296 4667 Web: www.geothermalassociation.ie Email: info@geothermalassociation.ie Chair: Niall McCormack

Regional offices Energy Policy Statistical Support Unit Building 2100, Cork Airport Business Park Cork, T12 KV8R Ocean Energy Development Unit Civic Offices, Belmullet, Co Mayo Finisklin Business Park, Co Sligo Finnabair Industrial Estate, Dundalk Co Louth, A91 W8Y7 Teagasc Oak Park, Carlow, R93 XE12 Tel: 059 917 0200 Web: www.teagasc.ie Email: info@teagasc.ie Director: Professor Gerry Boyle

Representative bodies Electricity Association of Ireland 127 Baggot Street Lower, Dublin 2 D02 F634 Tel: +353 (1) 524 1046 Web: www.eaireland.com Email: info@eaireland.com Chief Executive: Dara Lynott Energy Institute 61 New Cavendish Street London, W1G 7AR Tel: +44 (0)20 7467 7100 Web: www.energyinst.org Email: info@energyinst.org Republic of Ireland branch Chair: Owen McQuade Secretary: Liam P Ó Cléirigh Email: ireland@energyinst.org Northern Ireland branch Chair: Nicola Murphy Secretary: Sam McCloskey Email: northernireland@energyinst.org

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Energy Saving Trust (Northern Ireland) River House 48 High Street Belfast, BT1 2BE Tel: +44 (0)28 9244 9819 / +44 (0)28 9244 9820 Web: www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/aboutus/contact-us/

Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) 3 Park Place, Hatch Street Upper Dublin 2, D02 FX65 Tel: 01 808 2100 Web: www.seai.ie Email: info@seai.ie

Irish Bioenergy Association (IrBEA) DCU Alpha Business Unit ICA104 Old Finglas Road, Glasnevin Dublin 11, D11 KXN4 Tel: 086 125 6709 Web: www.irbea.org Email: contact@irbea.org Chief Executive: Seán Finan Irish Hydro Power Association Joseph Stewart & Company Corn Mills, Boyle, Co Roscommon Tel: 071 967 0100 Web: www.irishhydro.com Email: info@irishhydro.com Contact: Neil Stewart Irish Solar Energy Association 616 Edenderry Business Campus Edenderry, Co Offaly, R45 TD37 Tel: +353 46 977 3434 Web: www.irishsolarenergy.org Email: info@irishsolarenergy.org Marine Renewables Industry Association c/o Leixfort, Corrig Avenue Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin Web: www.mria.ie Email: chairman@mria.ie Chair: Peter D Coyle Secretary: Raymond Alcorn Meitheal na Gaoithe (Irish Wind Farmers’ Association) Kilkenny Research and Innovation Centre Burrells Hall St Kieran’s College, Kilkenny Tel: 056 779 0856 Web: www.mnag.ie Email: info@mnag.ie Chair: Grattan Healy Director: James Carville

RenewableNI Arthur House, 41 Arthur Street Belfast, BT1 4GB Tel: +44 (0)28 9044 6240 Web: www.renewableni.com Email: steven.agnew@renewableni.com Head: Steven Agnew

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Solar Energy Society of Ireland (SESI) c/o Focas Institute Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT) Kevin Street Dublin 8 Web: www.sesireland.ie Email: sesireland@gmail.com Secretary: Sarah McCormack Wind Energy Ireland Sycamore House, Millennium Park Osberstown, Naas, Co Kildare W91 D627 Tel: 045 899 341 Web: www.windenergyireland.com Email: office@windenergyireland.com CEO: Noel Cunniffe

Renewable energy companies ABB Limited Head Office Belgard Road Tallaght, Dublin 24 D24 KD78 Tel: 01 405 7300 Web: www.abb.com Email: marketing@ie.abb.com Balcas Limited 75 Killadeas Road Enniskillen, BT94 2ES Tel: +44 (0)28 6632 3003 Web: www.balcas.com Email: info@balcas.com Bord na Móna Main Street, Newbridge Co Kildare, W12 XR59 Tel: 045 439 000 Web: www.bordnamona.ie Head of Powergen Development: John Reilly Bord Gáis Energy One Warrington Place Dublin 2 Tel: 01 611 0133 Web: www.bordgaisenergy.ie Email: info@bordgais.ie Managing Director: Dave Kirwan

Bright Energy 3 Custom House IFSC, Dublin, D02 VY76 Tel: 01 588 1777 84-94 Great Patrick Street Belfast, BT1 2LU Tel: +44 (0)28 9544 2290 Web: www.brightenergy.com Email: hello@brightenergy.com Calor Long Mile Road, Dublin 12 Tel: 01 450 500 Web: www.calorgas.ie Airport Road West Sydenham Belfast, BT3 9EE Tel: +44 (0)28 9045 5588 Chief Executive: Duncan Osborne Clearpower Knockbrack House Matthews Lane, Donore Road Drogheda, A92 T803 Tel: 01 462 5000 Email: info@clearpower.ie Contact: Tom Sheehy DP Energy Ireland Ltd Mill House, Buttevant Co Cork, P51 TN35 Tel: +353 (0)22 23955 Web: www.dpenergy.com Email: info@dpenergy.com Dublin Waste to Energy Ltd Pigeon House Road, Dublin 4 Tel: 01 603 2100 Web: www.dublinwastetoenergy.ie Email: dublininfo@covanta.com Project Director: Kieran Mullins ElectroRoute 1st Floor, Marconi House Digges Lane Dublin 2, D02 TD60 Tel: 01 687 5700 Web: www.electroroute.com Email: info@electroroute.com CEO: Ronan Doherty EirGrid The Oval 160 Shelbourne Road Ballsbridge Dublin 4, D04 FW28 Tel: 01 677 1700 Web: www.eirgridgroup.com Email: info@eirgrid.com Chief Executive: Mark Foley

Energia – Renewables The Liberty Centre Blanchardstown Retail Park Dublin 15 D15 YT2H Tel: 01 869 2000 Web: www.energia.ie Managing Director: Peter Baillie EP UK Investments Larne Road Carrickfergus, BT38 7LX Tel: 028 9335 1644 Web: www.epuki.co.uk Email: EPUKImedia@partners-group.co.uk Contact: Ian Luney ESB Two Gateway Eastwall Road Dublin 3, D03 A995 Tel: 01 676 5831 Web: www.esb.ie Email: info@esb.ie Chief Executive: Paddy Hayes Gas Networks Ireland Gasworks Road, Cork T12 RX96 Tel: 021 453 4000 Web: www.gasnetworks.ie Email: networksinfo@gasnetworks.ie Managing Director: Denis O’Sullivan GE Grid Solutions Tel: +353 1 402 1100 Web: www.gegridsolutions.com Email: GridSolutions.Ireland@ge.com Country Sales Director: Séamus Ó Caoimh Greenlink Interconnector Limited 70 Sir John Rogerson’s Quay Dublin 2, D02 R296 Web: www.greenlink.ie Email: info@greenlink.ie Indaver Ireland The Highline, 1st Floor Bakers Point, Pottery Road Dún Laoghaire, Co Dublin Tel: 01 697 2900 Web: www.indaver.ie

Mainstream Renewable Power Top Floor, Arena House Arena Road, Sandyford Dublin 18, D18 V8P6 Tel: 01 290 2000 Web: www.mainstreamrp.com Email: info@mainstreamrp.com Group Chief Executive: Mary Quaney

NTR plc Burton Court, Burton Hall Drive Sandyford, Dublin 18, D18 Y2T8 Tel: 01 206 3700 Web: www.ntrplc.com Email: info@ntrplc.com Chief Executive: Rosheen McGuckian Ocean Winds 5th Floor, Atria One 144 Morrison Street Edinburgh, EH3 8EX, UK Tel: +44 74 25 662 824 Web: www.oceanwinds.com Email: info.ireland@oceanwinds.com Contact: Aga Szaraniec Oriel Windfarm Limited Digital Office Centre Balheary Road Swords, Co Dublin Tel: 01 963 0313 Web: www.orielwindfarm.ie Email: contact@orielwindfarm.ie RWE Renewables Ireland Limited Unit 5, Desart House Lower New Street Kilkenny, R95 H488 Web: www.uk-ireland.rwe.com Email: ireland@rwe.com Contact: Cathal Hennessy SIAC Wind Energy Dolcain House, Monastery Road Clondalkin, Dublin 22 D22 F8F5 Tel: 01 403 3111 Web: www.siac.ie Email: info@siac.ie Siemens Limited Innovation House DCU Innovation Campus Old Finglas Road, Dublin 11 Tel: 01 216 2241 Web: www.siemens.ie Email: gary.ocallaghan@siemens.com Chief Executive: Gary O’Callaghan

SSE Renewables Red Oak South South County Business Park Leopardstown Dublin, D18 W688 Tel: +353 1 655 6400 Director of Capital Projects: Paul Cooley Veolia Suite 18, Plaza 256 Blanchardstown Corporate Park 2 Blanchardstown Dublin 15, D15 TR96 Tel: 01 870 1200 Web: www.veolia.ie

Service providers ABCO Marine 282 Moira Road Lisburn Co Antrim, BT28 2TU 39 Pine Valley Avenue Rathfarnham Dublin 16 Tel: +44 (0)28 9262 2731 Web: www.abcomarine.co.uk Email: info@abcomarine.co.uk Aecom 4th Floor, Adelphi Plaza Adelphi Centre Georges Street Upper Dun Laoghaire, A96 T927 Tel: 01 238 3100 Web: www.aecom.com Arctic Ships Agents Roshine Road, Killybegs Co Donegal Tel: +44 (0)74 974 1165 Web: www.arcticshipsagents.com Email: info@arcticshipsagents.com Arup Consulting Engineers One Albert Quay Cork, T12 X8N6 Tel: 021 422 3200 Web: www.arup.com Email: cork@arup.com Contact: John O’Mahony

CADFEM Ireland 18 Windsor Place Dublin2, D02 PW74 Tel: 01 6763 765 Web: www.cadfem.net/ie Email: info@cadfem.ie Director: Derek Sweeney Chris Mee Group Euro Business Park Little Island, Cork Tel: 1850 315 415 Web: www.cmse.ie Email: info@cmse.ie Contact: Chris Mee

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Nordex Energy Ireland Ltd Clonmel House Business Centre Clonmel House, Forster Way Swords Demesne, Swords Co Dublin, K67 A6X3 Tel: 01 897 0260 Web: www.nordex-online.com Email: ireland@nordex-online.com Managing Director UK and Ireland: Nigel Hayes

SSE plc Red Oak South South County Business Park Leopardstown, Dublin 18 Tel: 01 655 6400 Ireland Country Lead: Stephen Wheeler

ENERCON Windfarm Services Ireland Ltd Unit 14, Northwood House Northwood Business Campus Santry, Dublin Tel: 01 893 4020 Email: sales.ireland@enercon.de Gardline Endeavour House Admiralty Road, Great Yarmouth Norfolk, NR30 3NG Tel: +44 (0)1493 845 600 Web: www.gardline.com Email: enquiries@gardline.com Gemserv Fitzwilliam Hall Business Centre Fitzwilliam Place, Dublin 2 Tel: 01 669 4630 Web: www.gemserv.com Email: info@gemserv.com Contact: Sarah Fuller GES Group 18a Pennybridge Industrial Estate Ballymena, Co Antrim, BT42 3HB Tel: +44 (28) 2565 6406 Web: www.ges-group.com Email: info@ges-group.com CEO: David Moore Hydrographic Surveys Limited The Cobbles, Crosshaven, Co Cork Tel: 021 483 1184 Web: www.hydrosurvey.com Email: info@hydrosurvey.com IGSL Ltd Unit F, M7 Business Park Naas, Co Kildare Tel: 045 846 176 Web: www.igsl.ie Email: info@igsl.ie

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Irish Drilling Ltd Old Galway Road Loughrea, Co Galway Tel: 091 841 274 Web: www.irishdrilling.ie Email: info@irishdrilling.ie

Ridgeway Unit 1&2 Greene Park, Ratoath Road Ashbourne, Co Meath, A84 XD98 Tel: 01 802 7173 Web: www.ridgeway-online.com Email: info@ridgeway-online.com

Irish Dredging Company Pembroke House Pembroke Street, Cork Tel: 021 427 7399 Web: www.irishdredging.com Email: info@dominicjdaly.com

RPS Group West Pier Business Campus Dún Laoghaire, Co Dublin A96 N6T7 Tel: 01 488 2900 Web: www.rpsgroup.com/ireland Contact: Olivier Gaillot

Kingspan Water & Energy Ltd 180 Gilford Road, Portadown Co Armagh, BT63 5LF Tel: +44 (0)28 3836 4400 Web: www.kingspan.com Email: contact@kingspan.com Medite Europe Ltd Redmondstown, Clonmel Co Tipperary, E91 V584 Tel: 087 248 3794 Web: www.mdfosb.com Email: david.murray@mdfosb.com Contact: David Murray Mott MacDonald Ireland Ltd South Block, Rockfield Dundrum, Dublin 16 Tel: 01 291 6700 Web: www.mottmac.com/ireland Email: dublin@mottmac.com Ørsted Ireland Floor 5, City Quarter Lapp's Quay Cork, T12 A2XD Tel: 021 422 3600 Email: davos@orsted.ie Web: www.orsted.ie Head of Commercial Development: David O’Sullivan P&O Maritime Services Parkmore Business Park West, Galway Tel: 091 773 980 Web: www.pomaritime.com Email: pomi.europe@pomarine.com Port of Galway Harbour Office New Docks, Galway Tel: +353 91 561 874 Web: www.theportofgalway.ie Email: info@theportofgalway.ie CEO: Conor O'Dowd

Shannon Foynes Port Company Harbour Office Foynes, Co Limerick V94 R232 Tel: 069 73 100 Web: www.sfpc.ie Email: info@sfpic.ie Sensus UK Fifth Floor Office 210 High Holborn London, WC1V 7DL Web: www.sensus.com Email: contactemea@sensus.com Shamrock Solar Energies Ltd Doora Industrial Estate, Quin Road Ennis, Co Clare Tel: 065 686 8468 Web: www.shamrocksolar.com Email: info@shamrocksolar.com SLR Consulting Ireland 7 Dundrum Business Park Dundrum Road Windy Arbour, Dublin 14 D14 N2Y7 Tel: 01 296 4667 Email: noniell@slrconsulting.com Contact: Nick O’Neill Smith Brothers Power Engineering Ltd 3 Inns Quay Dublin Tel: 01 903 6480 Web: www.smithbrothers.ie Email: info@smithbrothers.ie SmartBay Ireland GMIT Innovation Hub (IHub) Galway Dublin Road, Galway H91 DCH9 Tel: 091 394 251 Web: www.smartbay.ie Email: info@bluewisemarine.ie General Manager: John Breslin

Solmatix Ltd Northern Ireland Office 14 Glenwell Road, Newtownabbey Co Antrim, BT36 7RF Tel: +44 (0)28 9082 4000 Dublin Office Block B, The Crescent Building Northwood, Dublin D09 C6X8 Tel: 01 447 5271 Web: www.solmatix.com Email: info@solmatix.com Managing Director: Neville Bell SSL International Marine Ltd Main Street, Foynes, Co Limerick Tel: 069 65 710 Web: www.sslmarine.ie Email: services@sslmarine.ie Contact: Helen Fitzgerald Subsea Marine Ltd 15 Belfry Gardens, Dundalk Co Louth, A91 V5Y6 Tel: 087 254 7362 Web: www.subseamarine.ie Email: info@subseamarine.ie TechWorks Marine Pottery Enterprise Zone Pottery Road, Dún Laoghaire Co Dublin, A96 K571 Tel: 01 236 5990 Web: www.techworks.ie Email: office@techworks.ie Chief Executive: Charlotte O’Kelly

Legal advisors A&L Goodbody LLP Dublin Office International Financial Services Centre North Wall Quay Dublin 1, D01 H104 Tel: 01 649 2000 Web: www.algoodbody.com Email: rmoore@algoodbody.com Partner: Ross Moore Belfast Office 42/46 Fountain Street Belfast, BT1 5EF Tel: +44 (0)28 9031 4466 Email: belfast@algoodbody.com Partner: Mark Stockdale

Eversheds Sutherland Dublin Office One Earlsfort Centre, Earlsfort Terrace Dublin, D02 X668 Tel: 01 664 4200 Web: www.eversheds-sutherland.com Email: info@eversheds-sutherland.ie Partner: Mark Varian

McCann Fitzgerald Riverside One Sir John Rogerson’s Quay Dublin, D02 X576 Tel: 01 829 0000 Web: www.mccannfitzgerald.com Email: inquiries@mccannfitzgerald.com Partner: Valerie Lawlor

Belfast Office Victoria House Gloucester Street Belfast, BT1 4LS Tel: +44 (0)28 9023 0007 Email: belfast@arthurcox.com

Belfast Office Montgomery House Montgomery Street Belfast, BT1 4NX Tel: +44 (0)28 9526 2000

O’Flynn Exhams 58 South Mall, Cork Tel: 021 427 7788 Web: www.ofx.ie Email: info@ofx.ie

Fieldfisher The Capel Building Mary’s Abbey, Dublin D07 M4C6 Tel: 01 828 0600 Web: www.fieldfisher.com Email: info.ireland@fieldfisher.com

Philip Lee Solicitors 7/8 Wilton Terrace Dublin 2, D02 KC57 Tel: 01 237 3700 Web: www.philiplee.ie Email: info@philiplee.ie Partner: Siobhan McCabe

LKG Solicitors The Forum 29-31 Glasthule Road, Glasthule Co Dublin Tel: 01 231 1417 Web: www.lkgsolicitors.ie Email: info@lkgsolicitors.ie Partner: James Flynn

Pinsent Masons LLP Dublin Office 1 Windmill Lane, Dublin 2 D02 F206 Tel: 01 553 8600 Web: www.pinsentmasons.com Email: richard.murphy@pinsentmasons.com Partner: Richard Murphy

Byrne Wallace 88 Harcourt Street, Dublin 2 D02 DK18 Tel: 01 691 5000 Web: www.byrnewallace.com Email: gblake@byrnewallace.com Contact: Gavin Blake Beauchamps Solicitors Riverside Two, Sir John Rogerson's Quay Dublin 2, D02 KV60 Tel: 01 418 0600 Web: www.beauchamps.ie Email: info@beauchamps.ie Carson McDowell Dublin Office 9 Windsor Place Dublin 2, D02 YF30 Tel: 01 9053 720 Web: www.carson-mcdowell.com Email: law@carson-mcdowell.com Belfast Office Murray House, Murray Street Belfast, BT1 6DN Tel: +44 (0)28 9024 4951 Senior Partner: Neasa Quigley Elva Carbery Pembroke House 28-32 Upper Pembroke Street Dublin 2 D02 EK84 Tel: +353 86 839 9224 Web: www.elvacarbery.ie Email: elva@elvacarbery.ie Eugene F Collins Temple Chambers, 3 Burlington Road Dublin 4, D04 RD68 Tel: 01 202 6400 Web: www.efc.ie Email: lawyer@efc.ie Partner: Mark Walsh

LK Shields Solicitors 38 Upper Mount Street Dublin 2, D02 PR89 Tel: 01 661 0866 Web: www.lkshields.ie Email: pdaly@lkshields.ie Partner: Philip Daly

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Arthur Cox Dublin Office Ten Earlsfort Terrace Dublin, D02 T380 Tel: 01 920 1000 Web: www.arthurcox.com Email: dublin@arthurcox.com Partner: Alex McLean

Belfast Office The Soloist Building, 1 Lanyon Place Belfast, BT1 3LP Tel: 028 9089 4800

Maples and Calder 75 St. Stephen’s Green Dublin 2, D02 PR50 Tel: 01 619 2000 Web: www.maplesandcalder.com

Tughans Marlbrough House, 30 Victoria Street Belfast, BT1 3GG Tel: 028 9055 3300 Web: www.tughans.com Email: maria.oloan@tughans.com Partner: Maria O’Loan

Mason Hayes & Curran Barrow Street, Dublin 4 D04 TR29 Tel: 01 614 5000 Web: www.mhc.ie Email: dublin@mhc.ie Contact: Ailín Cosgrove

William Fry Solicitors 2 Grand Canal Square Dublin 2, D02 A342 Tel: 01 639 5000 Web: www.williamfry.com Email: info@williamfry.com Partner: Liam McCabe

Matheson 70 Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, Dublin 2 Tel: 01 232 2000 Web: www.matheson.com Email: dublin@matheson.com Partner: Garret Farrelly

William Orbinson QC The Bar Library 91 Chicester Street Belfast, BT1 3JQ Tel: 078 6024 5324 Web: www.williamorbinson.co.uk Email: william.orbinson@barlibrary.com

Financial and economic advisors Accenture 1 Grand Canal Square Dublin, D02 P820 Tel: 01 646 2000 Web: www.accenture.com

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AIB Group Group Headquarters 10 Molesworth Street Dublin 2 Tel: 01 660 0311 Web: www.aib.ie Contact: Eoghan O’Neill Bank of Ireland Global Markets 2 Burlington Plaza, Burlington Road Dublin 4 Tel: 076 624 4100 Web: www.bankofireland.com/corporate Chief Executive: Kevin Twomey Barclays One Molesworth Street Dublin, D02 RF29 Tel: 01 618 2600 Web: www.barclays.ie BNP Paribas 5 George’s Dock, IFSC, Dublin 1 D01 X8N7 Tel: 01 612 5000 Web: www.bnpparibas.ie Email: dublin.queries@bnpparibas.com Davy Corporate Finance Ltd Davy House, 49 Dawson Street Dublin 2 Tel: 01 679 7788 Web: www.davy.ie Email: dublin@davy.ie EY Dublin Office EY Building Harcourt Centre Harcourt Street, Dublin 2 Tel: 01 475 0555 Web: www.ey.com/en_ie Belfast Office Bedford House, 16 Bedford Street Belfast, BT2 7DT Tel: +44 (0)28 9044 3500

Goodbody Corporate Finance 2 Ballsbridge Park, Ballsbridge Dublin 4, D04 YW83 Tel: 01 667 0400 Web: www.goodbody.ie Email: goodbody@goodbody.ie Contct: Finbarr Griffin KPMG 1 Harbourmaster Place IFSC, Dublin 1 Tel: 01 410 1000 Web: www.kpmg.com Email: mike.hayes@kpmg.com Partner and Global Head of Renewables: Mike Hayes PwC Dublin Office One Spencer Dock North Wall Quay, Dublin 1 Tel: 01 792 6000 Web: www.pwc.ie Contact: Ronan MacNioclais Belfast Office Waterfront Plaza 8 Laganbank Road Belfast, BT1 3LR Tel: +44 (0)28 9024 5454 Web: www.pwc.co.uk Surety Bonds Insurance House Main Street, Townparks Carrick on Shannon, Co Leitrim Tel: +353 (0)71 962 3228 Web: www.suretybonds.ie Email: bonds@suretybonds.ie Managing Director: Colm McGrath Ulster Bank Corporate Markets 33 College Green, Dublin Tel: 1850 211 690 Web: www.ulsterbank.ie Email: email_us@ulsterbank.com Contact: Karen Doyle

Local energy agencies The Association of Irish Energy Agencies (AIEA) was established in November 1998 to represent the interests of its members in both the North and South of Ireland. The Association presently consists of a network of energy agencies and recently welcomed a number of county councils with no energy agencies as members. The overall aim of the Association is to promote renewable energy and the rational use of energy, to improve the quality of the environment and to contribute to sustainable development. The Association has worked closely with government and relevant local authorities to support the establishment of new agencies. The Association of Irish Energy Agencies (AIEA) c/o Tipperary Energy Agency Erasmus Smith House Church Street, Cahir Co Tipperary, E21 HP66 Tel: 052 744 3090 Chair: Alex Hamilton Secretariat: Françoise Hickey, Tipperary Energy Agency 3 Counties Energy Agency Kilkenny Research and Innovation Centre Burrell’s Hall St Kieran’s College Kilkenny, R95 TP64 Tel: +353 (0)56 779 0856 Web: www.3cea.ie Email: admin@3cea.ie CEO: Paddy Phelan Bryson Energy 4th Floor Stockmans House 39-43 Bedford Street Belfast, BT2 7EE Tel: +44 (0)28 9045 5008 Web: www.brysonenergy.org Email: info@brysonenergy.org Director: Nigel Brady CODEMA The Loft 2-4 Crown Alley Temple Bar Dublin 2, D02 TK74 Tel: 01 707 9818 Web: www.codema.ie Email: codema@codema.ie Contact: Donna Gartland

Cork City Energy Agency Room 236 City Hall, Cork Tel: +353 (0)21 494 1508 Email: kevin.mcgill@corkcity.ie Contact: Kevin McGill

Galway Energy Agency Limited City Hall, College Road, Galway Tel: +353 91 566 954

County Council members of the AIEA Kildare County Council Tel: 045 980 200

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Cork County Energy Agency Cork County Council, Energy Section Mallow Recycling Centre Quartertown Industrial Estate Mallow, Co Cork Tel: 022 43610 Email: jean.sayers@corkcoco.ie Contact: Jean Sayers

Waterford Energy Bureau Civic Offices Dungarvan Co Waterford Tel: 0761 102 020 Web: www.waterfordcouncil.ie Email: lfleming@waterfordcouncil.ie Contact: Liam Fleming

Louth County Council Tel: 042 933 5457

Galway County Council Energy Programme County Buildings, Prospect Hill Galway Kerry County Council Áras an Chontae, Rathass Road Tralee, Co Kerry Tel: 066 718 3500 Email: Gerry O’Riordan Contact: goriordan@kerrycoco.ie Mayo County Council Arran Place, Ballina, Co Mayo Tel: (094) 906 4000 Contact: Laura Dixon Meath County Council Energy Unit – Transportation Section County Hall Railway Street Navan, Co Meath Tel: 046 909 7000 Midlands Energy Agency Laois County Council County Hall JFL Avenue Portlaoise Tel: 057 867 4350 Email: sdempsey@laoiscoco.ie Contact: Suzanne Dempsey Tipperary Energy Agency Limited Erasmus Smith House, Church Street Cahir, E21 HP66, Co Tipperary Web: www.tea.ie Tel: 052 744 3090 Email: info@tippenergy.ie CEO: Lisa Vaughan

Renewable energy research institutions

renewable energy magazine

The following is an A-Z list of institutions involved in renewable energy research. Centre for Advanced Sustainable Energy (CASE)

Centre for Renewables and Energy

Queen’s University Belfast

The Centre for Renewables and Energy at Dundalk IT is an applied research centre based in the School of Engineering established in 2002. The Centre seeks national and EU funds to pursue research projects in the topics of wind energy, energy storage, bioenergy and wave energy.

CASE is a £10 million centre for industry driven research, aligning renewable energy expertise at Queen’s University Belfast, Ulster University and AFBI with the research needs of participating companies. Through the Invest NI Competence Centre Programme, CASE funds collaborative R&D in sustainability. Research interests: • bioenergy; • energy systems (i.e. storage, smart grid solutions); • marine renewable energy. Contact details: Centre for Advanced Sustainable Energy Queen’s University Belfast David Kerr Building, Stranmillis Road Belfast, BT9 5AG Tel: +44 (0)28 9097 5577 Web: www.case-research.net Email: s.murray@qub.ac.uk Contact: Dr Simon Murray

Centre for Marine and Renewable Energy Ireland (MaREI) University College Cork MaREI is the marine and renewable energy research, development and innovation Centre supported by Science Foundation Ireland. It combines the expertise of a wide range of research groups and industry partners, with the shared mission of solving the main scientific, technical and socio-economic challenges across the marine and renewable energy sectors. Research interests: • energy transition; • climate action; • the blue economy. Contact details: Marine and Renewable Energy Ireland (MaREI) Beaufort Building Environmental Research Institute University College Cork Haulbowline Road Ringaskiddy, Co Cork Tel: 021 486 4300 Web: www.marei.ie Email: marei@ucc.ie Centre Director: Brian Ó Gallachóir

Dundalk Institute of Technology

Research interests: • wind energy – particular expertise in urban and peri urban wind analysis and study the wind resource in complex locations, which has come from the availability of data from their 850kW onsite wind turbine autoproducer; • energy storage – particular assets on site of interest, namely a 4.65 MWh ice bank and a 50 kWh Zinc Bromine flow battery; • bioenergy – characterised anaerobic digestion feedstocks and drying of logwood for chipping; • wave energy research focuses on oscillating water column device design. Contact details: Centre for Renewables and Energy Dundalk Institute of Technology Dublin Road Dundalk County Louth, A91 K584 Tel: +353 (0)42 937 0474 Web: www.credit.ie Email: admin@credit.ie Centre Director: Dr Paul MacArtain

Clean Energies Research Group Queen’s University Belfast The Clean Energies Research Group is part of the School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. This school was rated one of the top 10 mechanical engineering schools in the 2008 research assessment exercise. Research interests: • turbomachinery (i.e. turbochargers, gas turbines); • alternative energy sources (power systems, biomass, biogas, waste-toenergy and energy conversion technologies). Contact details: Clean Energies Research Group School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Queen’s University Belfast, Ashby Building Stranmillis Road, Belfast, BT9 5AH Tel: +44 (0)28 9097 4133 Web: www.qub.ac.uk Email: a.foley@qub.ac.uk Contact: Dr Aoife Foley

COFORD COFORD is part of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine’s research division. Established in 1993, it is responsible for the development of national forest research and development policy and priorities. Research interests: • productivity – sustainable improvements in crop productivity and quality; • climate change – impact adaption and mitigation – responding to a changing climate; • expansion of the forest resource – sustainable increase in productive area. Contact details: COFORD Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine Kildare Street, Dublin 2 Tel: 01 607 2487 Web: www.coford.ie

Coillte Established in 1988, Coillte is a private limited company with all shares held by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine and the Minister for Finance. Coillte conducts research in a number of areas focused on developing the biomass wood for energy market. Research interests: • bioenergy; • biomass operations and logistics (chipping, drying, haulage etc.); • utilisation of low-value waste wood for energy (brash baling, lop and top); • carbon sequestration; and • sustainability. Contact details: Coillte Dublin Road Newtownmountkennedy Co Wicklow, A63 DN25 Tel: 01 201 1111 Web: www.coillte.ie

Energy Institute University College Dublin UCD Energy Institute plays an integral part in the energy transition, endorsing a net zero carbon energy system, promoting modernised integrated energy systems while empowering the citizen through education, innovation and digitalisation. Research interests: • energy systems; • energy management; and • energy in society. Contact details: Energy Institute UCD O'Brien Centre for Science

University College Dublin Belfield, Dublin 4 Tel: +353 1 716 2625 Web: www.energyinstitute.ucd.ie Email: energy@ucd.ie Contact: Andrew Keane

Energy Research Centre

Contact details: Energy Research Group Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering Museum Building, Trinity College Dublin Dublin 2 Tel: 01 896 1457 Web: www.tcd.ie/civileng/research/energy/ Email: civeng@tcd.ie Contact: Prof. Stephen Dooley

National University of Ireland, Galway

Research interests: • smart cities and communities; • low carbon technologies; and • energy efficiency. Low carbon technologies group • ocean energy; • wind energy; • hydro power; • solar; • geothermal. Contact details: Energy Research Centre Ryan Institute, NUI Galway University Road, Galway Tel: 091 495 061 Web: www.nuigalway.ie Email: energy@nuigalway.ie

Energy Research Group Trinity College Dublin The Energy Research Group focuses on the development of next-generation renewable energy technologies, while also examining topics such as energy recovery and behavioural change to address sustainability. Two prominent initiatives exist under this research theme: Trinity Haus, an innovation centre focusing on energy in buildings and sustainability in the built environment; and the Solar Energy Applications Group (SEAG), leading research group working in solar energy. Research interests: • hydro; • solar; • wind; and • wave.

Environment and Renewable Energy Centre (EREC) Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) The Environment and Renewable Energy Centre (EREC) based at AFBI Hillsborough assists the agri-food industry to maximise the potential of renewable senergy and support technology transfer activities. Research interests: • evaluation of short rotation coppice (SRC) willow production with bioremediation of dirty water; • storage and utilisation of biomass crops; • the carbon footprint of agricultural enterprises; • combustion and emission characteristics of varying biomass sources; • demonstration of other renewable energy technologies; • demonstration of energy saving design and technology; and • anaerobic digestion of animal manure. Contact details: Environment and Renewable Energy Centre (EREC) Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) Large Park, Hillsborough Co Down, BT26 6DR Tel: +44 (0)28 9268 2484 Web: www.afbini.gov.uk/articles/environment-andrenewable-energy-centre Email: renewable.energy@afbini.gov.uk Contact: Stanley McDowell

Environmental Research Institute University College Cork The Environmental Research Institute was established in 2000 and is aimed at supplying environmental research and education at UCC. The institute brings together expertise in biological, chemical and environmental sciences as well as environmental engineering, energy and law. The institute has over 150 researchers and five thematic research areas, one of which is sustainable energy and environmental engineering.

Contact details: Environmental Research Institute (ERI) Lee Road, Cork, T23 XE10 Tel: 021 490 1931 Web: www.ucc.ie/en/eri Email: eri@ucc.ie Contact: Professor Sarah Culloty

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The Energy Research Centre focuses on research, education and outreach in the fields of energy and environment. Established in 2007, it is part of the Ryan Institute (for environment, marine and energy research). The centre is divided into four thematic research groups: bioenergy research; renewable resources; energy efficient technologies; energy and society.

Research interests: • wind energy; • bioenergy and biofuels; • energy policy and modelling; • climate change (GHG flux modelling and climate change adaption); • marine renewable energy.

Marine Institute, Galway Established by the 1991 Marine Institute Act, the Marine Institute is the national agency responsible for marine research, technology development and innovation. The institute operates an ocean energy test site with SEAI. Real-time wave information is available at the Galway Bay test site for all developers of wave energy devices who have a prototype that is built for open water testing in a relatively sheltered location. Research interests: • marine technology; • marine biotechnology. Contact details: Marine Institute Rinville, Oranmore, Co Galway, H91 R673 Tel: 091 387 200 Web: www.marine.ie Email: institute.mail@marine.ie

Teagasc Teagasc, the Agriculture and Food Development Authority, provides integrated research and advisory and training services to the agricultural and food sectors as well as rural communities. It is funded by the State, research programmes and other revenue streams. In the area of energy research, Teagasc aims to promote the development and expansion of renewables production from agricultural sources. Research interests: • energy crops; • liquid biofuels; • biomass combustion; and • anaerobic digestion. Contact details: Teagasc Oakpark, Carlow, R93 XE12 Tel: 059 917 0200 Web: www.teagasc.ie Teagasc Director: Professor Gerry Boyle

A network for change workplace charging will not be practical for everyone but for many, public charging will be the exception.

renewable energy magazine

This said, the physiological boost to potential EV owners in seeing a plentiful supply of EV chargers at every conceivable location cannot be underestimated, it generates confidence.

It is true to say that electric vehicles alone won’t solve climate change or allow us to meet our net zero 2050 ambitions but they are a significant part of this puzzle, writes Simon Acton, Chairperson of the Irish EV Owners Association and Managing Director of Next Eco Car. Currently, 30 per cent of Irish emissions are generated from fossil fueled transport, so we can make significant inroads with widespread adoption of electric vehicles for public, private and commercial use. Not to mention greater use of micro-mobility and active travel modes. What few people know is that electric vehicles will also form part of our future home energy ecosystem. Imagine charging your car from the energy you created for free from the solar panels on your roof. Imagine using the battery in your car to store energy from the grid when it is cheap and then running your home from this stored energy when grid energy is expensive. Imagine being paid by your energy supplier to draw-down the energy stored in your EV battery to help with local grid balancing. All of this technology will be available in a few short years. Crucially, these are benefits that simply couldn’t be achieved with other mooted energy sources for cars, such as hydrogen. Broadly speaking, there are three key activities to ensure a successful transition to electric vehicles: 96

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harness our untapped supply of renewable energy sources, primarily from offshore wind and solar power to ensure that the energy consumed by our EVs will be clean;

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build a ubiquitous, reliable and easily accessible public EV charging network and ensure that as far as possible citizens can also either charge at home or at work; and

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transition our fossil fueled fleet to electric vehicles. This relies heavily on a reliable supply of affordable new and used EVs. Used EVs in particular are crucial to ensure that we achieve the ‘Just Transition’ promised and that no citizen is left behind.

So how are we progressing with our public EV charging network? Before answering this question, it is important to note that most EV owners will actually charge at home or at work most of the time. Of course, home or

On the downside, local authorities and the major fuel forecourt retailers have been slow to act. Local authorities have broadly failed to avail of the SEAI grants made available to them for installing public charging infrastructure. A major scheme by the four Dublin councils has been years in the works and urgently needs to move from strategy to implementation. As for the major fuel retailers, some have implemented a small number of their own charge points or allowed other network operators to do so on their sites, but they have a very long way to go. They seem to be waiting on sufficient growth in EV numbers before committing to building any meaningful amount of infrastructure, but this is a classic chicken and egg situation. The message is simple, build it and they will come. The jury is out on how many chargers we will ultimately need but it is important that we right-size the network to ensure that the investment can be effectively supported, maintained and upgraded as standards evolve. It is also crucial that a single straightforward access mechanism is implemented across all charge point operators. This should ideally be by credit or debit card rather than network specific apps or RFID cards which are an unnecessary complication. So, will we succeed in meeting our objectives? 2050 is a long way out and net-zero relies on a broad range of actions across multiple sectors, but as far as transport is concerned, we can meet our objectives with the correct combination of ambition, funding and education. As for public charging infrastructure, for 2030 it is not a major concern, but the quicker we can expand the charging network the faster Irish EV adoption will progress.

Renewable Energy Magazine 2021

Articles inside

Trinity’s Brian Caulfield discusses the barriers to transport decarbonisation

Solar PV and RESS-2

Director of Energy Strategy for the North Thomas Byrne discusses policy options

MaREI Director Brian Ó Gallachóir on the role of carbon budgets

The EU’s Clean Energy Package

The EU Commission’s Catharina Sikow-Magny discusses a decarbonised economy

Round table discussion An urgent response to the climate crisis

Energy Minister Eamon Ryan TD discusses raised ambitions

Foreword

Cover story: Bord na Móna’s JP McGrath on renewables, recycling, and restoration