Ireland’s Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications has opened a review into the energy security of the country’s gas and electricity systems.
With the review focusing on the sustainable transition to net-zero emissions by 2050, the department has launched a consultation to seek views from interested parties.
The consultation document sets out the demand and supply-side risks that can impact the security of energy supplies for Ireland’s electricity and gas systems, such as weather events, significant increases in demand, disruption to gas imports and geopolitical risks.
As such, the review will explore measures to mitigate the risks facing Ireland’s energy supplies, including the need for additional capacity to import energy, to reduce energy usage, energy storage, fuel diversification and renewable gases (such as biomethane and hydrogen).
These include building an additional 700MW electricity interconnection with France, in addition to the Celtic Interconnector.
Renewable energy proposals include an additional pumped storage with a capacity of 360MW, a 450MW dedicated biomass plant, and converting a combined cycle gas turbine to run on hydrogen.
All the mitigation options were modelled under a number of shock scenarios to understand the impact of each mitigation option and the level of security of supply that they can provide.
The consultation period runs until the 28th of October, following which the responses will be reviewed. A set of recommendations will be brought to the government for consideration once the review has been completed.
Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications Eamon Ryan said: “The independent review carried out by CEPA stress tests our electricity and gas energy systems to identify risks, and to provide a range of evidence-based options to address potential security of supply gaps.
“The analysis is undertaken in the context of major change in the Irish energy market, including a substantial increase in electricity generated from renewable sources, the phasing out of traditional fossil fuels in energy generation and electrification of heat and transport.
He added: “As we transition to a net-zero emissions future, we must ensure that our pathway of decarbonisation is underpinned by both affordability and, critically, security in how we access and use energy at all times, including times when there might be demand risk or disruption.
“It is essential that we have reliable sources of energy, including adequate gas and electricity storage, so that consumer and business confidence in our economy and in our energy infrastructure remains strong. I am asking for all interested parties to review this consultation document and technical analysis and provide us their views and evidence.”