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Some €8m has been provided for the Mitchelstown renewable gas GRAZE project, which will use gas on-farm anaerobic digestion to power up to 56,000 homes.
The project is one of the first to receive funding as part of the €500m Climate Action Fund announced by Minister for the Environment Richard Bruton.
As previously reported, Gas Networks Ireland believes it will need up to 10m tonnes of grass silage and 250 localised on-farm anaerobic digesters by 2030 to deliver its target of 20% of Ireland’s natural gas supply.
Critical role to play in Ireland’s energy future and in the journey to decarbonisation
They hope to push this figure up to 50% of the supply by 2050. The total value of the GRAZE project is just under €29m.
The Mitchelstown facility will be the first of 17 to be connected to the natural gas network, delivering gas to the grid.
“It is an asset which has a critical role to play in Ireland’s energy future and in the journey to decarbonisation that we are on,” said Gas Networks Ireland managing director Denis O’Sullivan.
“Gas Networks Ireland is helping to deliver a cleaner energy supply through innovation in key areas such as renewable gas.”
Future outlook
The Mitchelstown project is expected to be completed between 2019 and 2022, but the first renewable gas from grass enters the grid by the end of this year, having been processed in a facility in Cush, Co Kildare.
The GRAZE project is also part of a bigger plan to develop two compressed natural gas (CNG) stations.
In the long-term, these stations will be part of over 70 stations, which will enable HGV and bus operators to switch from renewable gas to diesel.
Gas Networks Ireland stated that the development of natural gas projects is key to establishing these stations and meeting Ireland’s climate targets.
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