A new partnership between Gas Networks Ireland and Bia Energy will enable renewable biomethane gas from the Bia Energy facility at Huntstown, Co Dublin, to be injected directly into the gas network.

Gas Networks Ireland will extend its existing network to create Dublin’s first direct renewable gas entry point at Bia Energy’s new reconfigured €63m anaerobic digestion (AD) facility in Huntstown.

The agreement comes on the back of the recently announced National Biomethane Strategy.

The plant will see biomethane made from food waste from the greater Dublin area injected directly into the State’s gas network.

Renewable biomethane gas is fully compatible with the existing national gas network and all existing appliances, technologies and vehicles that currently use gas.

Carbon neutral

Structurally identical to natural gas, biomethane is a carbon neutral renewable gas that can be made from farm and food waste through controlled decomposition, a process known as AD.

Bia Energy’s AD facility at Huntstown will play a role in decarbonising the national gas network grid and can be a model for further investment in the growing biomethane sector.

Bia Energy is part of the Sretaw group, which was founded by Irish businessman Eamon Waters.

Acquired by Sretaw last year, the Bia Energy AD facility in Huntstown is being entirely reconfigured to enable it to process a wide range of organic material, such as food waste, food processing residues and dairy and agricultural wastes.

The AD process will also create a byproduct known as biofertiliser that can be used to replace conventional chemical fertilisers, with significant positive environmental impacts.

Renewable electricity

By capturing the gas produced during the controlled decomposition of these materials, the facility will initially use the gas to generate up to 4.8 megawatts of renewable electricity.

However, it is being reconfigured to upgrade the gas to biomethane, in line with the Government’s target of having 5.7 terrawatt hours (TWh) of biomethane production by 2030.

The partnership between Gas Networks Ireland and Bia Energy was launched by Minister of Agriculture Charlie McConalogue at the formal opening of Bia Energy’s Huntstown AD facility.

Speaking at the event, Minister McConalogue said: “The launch of this facility aligns with the Government’s biomethane strategy and is a positive step forward in our aim to create opportunities for the Irish agri-food sector to produce not only food but also energy.”

He said that the facility “embodies the innovative spirit and commitment to sustainability that is essential for Ireland's future,” and “demonstrates how by working with local farmers and leveraging the expertise of Gas Networks Ireland, Bia Energy shares the Government’s ambition to turn organic waste into valuable resources”.

Expansion

Bia Energy’s managing director Brendan Traynor said: “With an initial investment of €63m, Bia Energy will create up to 30 local jobs, with plans for further expansion.

“Our commitment to sustainability includes careful management and processing of food waste, offering a sustainable solution for food manufacturing, distribution, retail, and waste, thereby closing the loop on the circular economy.

“We are also partnering with local farmers to provide a nutrient-rich biofertiliser, replacing approximately 7,000t of chemical fertiliser annually and supporting the growth of a variety of crops.

“Bia Energy’s Dublin plant is set to contribute up to 120 gigawatt hours of biomethane annually to the national gas network, more than doubling the biomethane volume injected in 2023 and reducing nearly 25,000t of carbon dioxide emissions each year.”