The recent cold snap served as a reminder of Ireland’s continuing dependence on gas for its energy requirements. An all-time record for gas demand was set on January 8th, less than a month after the previous record had been set on December 13th.
“What came through in the cold spell was the crucial role played by the gas network,” says David Kelly, director of customer and business development with Gas Networks Ireland. “It’s easily forgotten about because it is underground and out of sight; people don’t realise how important it is for electricity generation.
“What’s not widely known is that 65 per cent of the gas used in Ireland today is for electricity generation. On average, gas accounts for nearly half of Ireland’s electricity supply and is absolutely crucial for keeping the lights on and supplying our 725,000 customers who depend on it to heat their homes and run their industrial processes.”
The fact that new records are being set at a time when new wind and solar energy sources continue to come on stream is due to continuing growth in electricity demand and the fact that renewable energy is not always available.
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“The country continues to depend on gas partly because of the intermittent nature of renewables,” says Kelly. “Gas is there as a backup, and it will be always be needed in some capacity to balance our low-demand times for renewable electricity.”
That high level of dependency makes what is known as the energy trilemma all the harder to solve. Affordability, security of supply and decarbonisation are the three dimensions of the trilemma, Kelly explains.
“The Russian invasion of Ukraine created a security of supply problem in mainland Europe, and that in turn led to an affordability crisis with the market price of gas increasing quite dramatically. A balanced approach to those issues is needed at all times.”
Switching to renewable gas offers a means of improving security of supply and, in the longer term, affordability, while also addressing climate change. Kelly points out that while the gas network currently transports natural gas, that won’t always be the case.
“We move energy around the country through approximately 15,000km of pipes and our north star is the decarbonisation of the network. Over time we will transform our business by using biomethane and hydrogen in the network instead of the natural gas we use now. It’s not the first time we have changed gas on the network. We switched from town gas manufactured from coal to natural gas back in the 1980s and what we are doing now is not dissimilar.”
Gas Networks Ireland published its Pathway to a Net Zero Carbon Network strategy last year. “The document sets out how we see the gas network transitioning over the next 20 years,” says Kelly. “By the mid-2040s we won’t be transporting natural gas any more. At present, 99 per cent of the gas in the network is natural gas. That CH4 gas, methane, typically comes from offshore gasfields and we need to replace that with renewable gases.”
The aim is for biomethane to account for about 30 per cent of that. “The Government published its biomethane strategy last year and set a goal of having 5.7TWh of indigenously produced biomethane by 2030. That would be about 10 per cent of current gas demand. Currently, we transport a little over 57TWh of gas.”
Biomethane is a carbon-neutral renewable gas primarily made from farm and food waste through a process is known as anaerobic digestion, Kelly explains.
“We have a big agriculture sector in this country, and it produces lots of waste. Biomethane solves a problem for agriculture by turning its waste into a renewable gas and it also presents farmers the potential to generate additional sources of revenue. It’s already being produced here in fairly small quantities, but production is expected to increase quite dramatically in the coming years.
“In terms of end users, we have seen a 98 per cent annual increase in demand for gas in transport from heavy goods vehicles, which are now benefiting from the emerging network of BioCNG stations, such as the one we recently launched in Junction 14 last September.”
Germany views Ireland as a significant exporter of green hydrogen in the longer term and we recently signed an agreement with the HyNOS group of gas system operators in Europe to create a North Sea corridor to facilitate the transport of hydrogen
— David Kelly
The development of biomethane won’t happen on its own, though. “It does need Government support. We understand that the new Government is committed to delivering on the target and that is very welcome.”
For Gas Networks Ireland’s part, the organisation has signed a number of contracts with some of the leading players in the biomethane sector. “These include Bia Energy in Huntstown in north Dublin and we welcome new players to the market like Cycle 0, Stream Bio Energy and Nephin Renewables,” says Kelly.
The injection of biomethane into the gas network is facilitated by two methods. The first is a direct connection where a pipeline extension is constructed to connect a biomethane plant to the network. Where a direct pipeline is not viable, the second option is to transport the biomethane by truck to a central grid injection facility, where it will be injected into the gas network.
A new central grid injection facility is under construction at Mitchelstown, Co Cork, and is expected to be commissioned by the end of the year.
“That facility will account for 12 per cent of our biomethane target,” says Kelly. “We envisage having five injection facilities around the country. Biomethane represents a very exciting opportunity for the country, and we are very focused on supporting the delivery of the Government target.”
It is anticipated that the organisation will have a dedicated biomethane grid and a dedicated hydrogen grid by the mid-2040s.
“Hydrogen will probably account for 70 per cent of total gas demand by 2045 or 2050,” Kelly notes. “The availability of hydrogen is much more long term. We are not going to see a scaling of hydrogen until offshore wind energy becomes available at scale, which is likely to be in the mid-2030s. ”
Gas Networks Ireland is already preparing for that time. “Germany is probably the biggest user of hydrogen today,” says Kelly. “It needs a lot of it to power its industry in the north of the country and that needs to be green hydrogen produced from wind and solar energy. Germany views Ireland as a significant exporter of green hydrogen in the longer term and we recently signed an agreement with the HyNOS group of gas system operators in Europe to create a North Sea corridor to facilitate the transport of hydrogen.”
HyNOS (Hydrogen Networks for the Northern Seas) is a working group of European gas transmission system operators (TSOs) from around the northern seas that includes Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, the United Kingdom and Ireland.
“Green hydrogen production can help to maximise the potential of offshore wind, increase the use of offshore infrastructure and ultimately reduce costs,” Kelly adds.
As the energy landscape continues to evolve, Gas Networks Ireland is exploring other potential options to decarbonise, such as district heating networks. For the nearer term, the organisation is currently refreshing its business strategy and customers will continue to be a key focus for Gas Networks Ireland.
“The commitment to our 725,000 customers is unwavering; it’s really important to us,” says Kelly. “We are very mindful of vulnerable customers, especially at times when the temperature is dropping, and we work closely with the regulator to ensure they are protected.
“We will keep working with our larger customers to keep them supplied and deliver solutions to help them decarbonise, whether that’s biomethane today or green hydrogen in the longer term.”
