Garrett Donnellan
Chief Development Officer, Energia Group
Energy plays a vital role in our lives. From the most mundane tasks to the operation of cutting-edge innovation, energy is the engine of individual, societal and economic progress. For centuries, it has empowered us to turn ideas into action.
The type of energy we produce — and how we generate and use it — is rapidly changing. Ireland is in the midst of an unprecedented transformation to meet national and global climate commitments.
Ireland’s energy capabilities
At first glance, the task is straightforward: we must rapidly invest in and connect new renewable power, primarily onshore wind and solar and electrify as much domestic and industrial demand as possible. This is key to meeting Ireland’s targets of achieving 80% renewable electricity and reducing overall emissions by 51% by 2030.
Yet, like any transformation, the energy transition isn’t simple; there are scale and speed challenges and complex energy system upgrades needed to support it. Nevertheless, our experience of working at the heart of the energy system for over two decades convinces me that, with the right policies and investment, Ireland can provide the blueprint for a modern, sustainable and successful economy.
Expanding renewable energy projects
As one of Ireland’s largest integrated energy companies, Energia Group supplies almost 17% of the island of Ireland’s total electricity and is responsible for almost 21% of its installed wind power capacity. Increasing our power generation from renewables to meet the rapidly growing demand for clean energy is a key objective underpinning our strategy. We are committed to trebling our onshore renewable energy generation by 2030.
With a development pipeline of over 3,400MW of renewable energy projects, our focus has expanded from onshore to offshore wind, solar, battery storage and green hydrogen. To sustain this growth and diversification, we’re building strategic partnerships and collaborating with stakeholders to maintain momentum in the transition.
The recent launch of our Drumlins Park wind farm in Co Monaghan, delivered under a framework for corporate power purchase agreements with Microsoft, was a significant milestone for us. It marked our 16th operational wind farm, and we have two further wind farms in construction. We are investing in solar farms at scale too — with an advanced development pipeline of 650+MW, including projects in Meath and Dublin.
With the right policies and investment,
Ireland can provide the blueprint for a
modern, sustainable and successful economy.
Growing emphasis on offshore wind
We’ve also been active in offshore wind, exploring development opportunities with our partner, Vårgrønn and preparing for the Government’s upcoming auction. This emphasis on offshore is reflected in the Government’s ambitious targets for at least 37GW by 2050.
This available and valuable resource potential is greater than Ireland’s forecast demand and with limited export options, we must stimulate demand for this new renewable electricity while also ensuring supply security. We see complementary opportunities to achieve decarbonisation and to realise investment and growth in a modern, digital economy.
Supporting customers’ decarbonisation digitally
As a leading integrated utility, our customers are also very important to us. We’ve embarked on a data-driven, digital-first approach to support our customers across 848,700 sites on their own decarbonisation journey while delivering best-in-class customer service.
For our customers on smart tariffs, we’ve launched ‘Energy Insights’ — a powerful digital tool, based on our cloud-based Digital IQ platform, providing data insights on their electricity consumption. We also provide businesses with real-time energy monitoring, enabling them to take control of their consumption, maximise their energy efficiency and help them reduce the carbon impact of their activities.
A more sustainable energy future for all
The energy transition represents a remarkable opportunity for Ireland to improve energy supply security through significant investment in new renewable projects to decarbonise our energy needs across the economy and promote a model of sustainable economic growth. Energia Group is at the forefront of powering this transition. We will play our part in ensuring a sustainable future for all and continue to empower people to turn ideas into action.
