Ireland’s electricity debate has focused heavily on what we need to build: more wind farms, more grid, more interconnection and more backup generation. They all matter. But as demand rises, fossil fuel prices remain highly volatile and Ireland pursues its target of 80 per cent renewable electricity by 2030, another question is becoming increasingly urgent: can Ireland make better use of the electricity system it already has?
The answer matters now. EirGrid’s latest adequacy assessment points to a tighter electricity supply outlook between 2026 and 2028. At the same time, the public debate around electricity demand, data centres, business costs and security of supply has become more prominent.
Demand response is one part of the answer. It allows large energy users to adjust how much electricity they use when the grid is under pressure, or when renewable generation is plentiful. By doing so, it helps to prevent blackouts, keep costs down and enable more renewable energy to flow through the system.
This flexibility is brought together through what Enel X – an Enel Group company with significant operations in Ireland – refers to as a virtual power plant. This is a co-ordinated network of flexible energy assets that can be reduced or shifted when needed, from battery energy storage systems and on-site generation to electricity demand. Enel X is the innovation arm for Enel, a multinational power company that generates, transmits and distributes electricity.
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For participating businesses, virtual power plants are a commercial opportunity. Energy is often treated as a fixed overhead: a bill to be managed at the end of the month. Demand response changes that. Businesses can earn revenue for being available to respond, reducing exposure to peak prices and getting more value from infrastructure they already operate.
This is not a theoretical idea. Across the world, demand response is becoming a mainstream tool for electricity systems. Enel’s virtual power plant has now reached more than 10GW of demand response capacity under management globally, spanning 14 countries, giving it significant international experience in helping electricity systems manage pressure at peak times. From Enel’s Global Network Operations Centre in Dublin, teams operate around the clock, every day of the year, supporting flexibility operations and grid events across multiple international markets, making clever use of existing assets to support electricity systems.
‘Reducing emissions isn’t just about generating renewable energy, it’s also about using electricity at the right time’
— Vicky Brady, head of energy, environment and utilities management at DAA
The scale in Ireland is significant. During the peak of the heatwave in June of this year, Enel provided almost 573 MWh of flexibility to the Irish grid in response to challenging system conditions. For context, Enel has calculated that this could power every Dart train in Dublin, or meet the electricity needs of up to 7,500 typical households, for the duration of the week-long heatwave. Demand response is no longer a niche. It is already operating at a meaningful scale.
Across Enel’s international portfolio, Ireland was the most active market in the first quarter of this year, with Irish businesses responding to more calls for demand response support than many much larger electricity markets. Ireland has the potential to become one of the world’s most advanced markets for smarter electricity use, delivering real benefits for businesses and electricity users.
Enel’s virtual power plant is made possible by businesses adjusting their electricity consumption when the electricity system needs support. In Ireland, Enel X provides the technology and local expertise to help realise the opportunity all around us. The challenge is to make demand response attractive enough for more organisations to take part, while making better use of existing assets to support the electricity system at a lower cost than building even more dedicated supply-side assets.
Data centres are a particularly important part of this discussion, but the conversation should not start and stop at how much electricity they use. The next most important question is how they can support the grid they depend on. Under Ireland’s new connection policy, new data centres and existing sites seeking additional capacity are expected to bring significant generation or storage capability as part of their connection arrangements.
Garrett Prendiville, critical environment operations manager, DCOPS, Dublin at Microsoft said: “Data centres need reliability, so we invest heavily in resilient backup energy infrastructure. The opportunity exists to use some of that capacity to support the grid at times of pressure, while also delivering our operations.”
This creates an opportunity to use energy infrastructure better to support the wider grid at times of pressure. This is already happening and Ireland should build on that success.
‘Data centres need reliability, so we invest heavily in resilient backup energy infrastructure’
— Garrett Prendiville, critical environment operations manager, DCOPS, Dublin at Microsoft
Evan Barker, manager engineering operations at Digital Realty, elaborated on how this works in practice: “Energy flexibility is becoming an increasingly important tool in the transition to a low-carbon electricity system. By adjusting non-critical energy consumption when the grid needs support, data centres can help unlock additional renewable generation, reduce system constraints and strengthen security of supply. As one of Ireland’s largest digital infrastructure providers, we are committed to working with industry partners and grid operators to ensure data centres are part of the solution to the energy transition.”
Flexibility also makes better use of renewable electricity. Wind and solar power are variable by nature. At times, Ireland can produce more renewable electricity than the system is able to use, meaning clean power may be curtailed. At other times, demand is high and the grid is under pressure. Demand response helps bridge that gap by encouraging businesses to shift electricity use to periods when renewable power is plentiful and reduce demand when the grid is tight.
According to Vicky Brady, head of energy, environment and utilities management at DAA: “Reducing emissions isn’t just about generating renewable energy, it’s also about using electricity at the right time. Energy flexibility allows DAA to align parts of our demand with periods when renewable power is most abundant, helping to reduce pressure on the grid and lower overall system emissions. It complements the investments we’re making in energy efficiency, electrification and renewable generation across the Dublin Airport campus.”
New generation, grid investment, storage, interconnection and reliable back-up capacity are all essential. But they take time to deliver. Demand response can move faster, as it uses capacity and assets that have already been built.
That is why demand response should be treated as a core part of Ireland’s energy security toolkit. It reduces costs for the State and consumers; supports grid resilience; reduces pressure at peak times; helps integrate more renewable energy; and creates a new revenue stream for businesses willing and able to participate.
Ireland’s hidden power plant is already out there. The task now is to unlock more of it by making participation easier, more attractive and commercially practical for businesses across the country.
Enel X provides demand response and virtual power plant solutions in Ireland. You can reach Enel X at enelxireland@enel.com or visit enelx.ie
