As 2022 draws to an end, its worth reflecting on some of the progress made over the past year. We saw the first commercial solar farms energise during summer and for the first time ever, every farm, household and business had the right to sell renewable electricity back to the grid and get paid for it.

The dramatic invasion of Ukraine by Russia certainly focused minds across Europe and Ireland and we saw a ramping up of our targets for wind, solar, anaerobic digestion and biomethane.

The impact of the war on energy prices resulted in the acceleration of the uptake of renewables on-farm, namely solar PV, while slashing the payback period on such systems. The impending 60% grant for solar PV systems under TAMS in 2023 will only further accelerate the uptake of the technology on farms.

In this year’s December renewables focus, we run through an example of how the new TAMS grant aid will impact the payback period for a solar PV system on a typical dairy farm. In the example, the solar PV system generates around 60% of the farms electricity requirements and is paid off in two and a half years.

We then run through a new service launched by the IFA and Bord Gáis Energy to help guide farmers through their solar PV journey. We also discuss the funding which is available under the support scheme for renewable heat and how farmers can avail of the €300m fund.

Finally, we visit Tom Campbell, who runs an AD plant outside Lurgan, Co Armagh. Tom partnered with Cork company Scilling Digital Mining to develop a novel bitcoin mining system which is powered by biogas.