Renewable energy magazine 2020



This issue of the Energy Ireland Renewable Energy magazine comes at a pivotal time of developments in renewable energy, north and south.

2020 has been a remarkable year for the renewables sector. The new Programme for Government has delivered the opportunity for a significant step change in the development of renewables at a time when Ireland faces the stark challenge of delivering levels of decarbonisation over the next 10 years equal to what it has achieved in the last 30.

The Programme for Government, followed swiftly by the first RESS-1 auction, which heralded fresh opportunity in onshore wind and the maturing of the solar PV sector, presents opportunity. Simultaneously, the evolution of offshore wind potential and the ambitious target of 5GW by 2030 will provide the much sought-after confidence to generators and investors.

Ireland has an opportunity to be a global leader in the decarbonisation of its power system, benefitting from the export of excess generation and expertise, while also harvesting the social and health benefits of a greener climate. The Government’s ambitions indicate that it is ready to play its role in enabling this opportunity as it looks towards a green recovery.

8th December 2020

Doubling carbon reduction ambitions

Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Eamon Ryan TD, outlines progress on the Government’s plans to double its carbon emission reduction targets to 7 per […]
8th December 2020

Driving Ireland’s green recovery

Director of Capital Projects at SSE Renewables Paul Cooley discusses the opportunity presented for Ireland to build a green recovery through the renewable energy transition.  Welcoming […]
8th December 2020

GE’s Grid Solutions: Your trusted partner in integrating offshore wind energy to the grid

GE’s Grid Solutions is at the forefront of offshore grid technology, helping to harness the power of offshore wind. Renewable technologies are enabling the transition to […]
8th December 2020

Efficiency, renewables and interconnection

The Programme for Government signalled a move away from ambition to action as Ireland seeks to move from laggard to leader in the renewable transition, writes […]
8th December 2020

The role of innovation in the energy transition

Innovation will be central to ambitions to decarbonise the economy states Sam McCloskey, Director, Centre for Advanced Sustainable Energy (CASE). There is no doubt that the […]
8th December 2020

Energy priorities of the European Commission

Kadri Simson, EU Commissioner for Energy outlines the role of member states and the energy system in achieving the EU’s raised ambitions on tackling climate change. […]
8th December 2020

Regulation supporting transition

Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) Commissioner Jim Gannon discusses the regulatory outlook for the renewable transition. Having joined the Commission in October 2019, Gannon describes […]
8th December 2020

Pathways to the 2030 renewable electricity target

Fully engaging citizens while also seeking to rapidly increase the levels of renewable electricity generation out to 2030 presents the greatest challenge to ambitions, believes Director […]
8th December 2020

Renewables a ‘safe haven’ amidst market uncertainty

The Covid-19 pandemic has had a disruptive impact on virtually every sector and business during 2020, and this certainly extended to the Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) […]
8th December 2020

My vision for the renewable electricity sector

Economy Minister for Northern Ireland Diane Dodds MLA sets out her ambitions for renewable energy ahead of the delivery of a new Energy Strategy. In June […]
8th December 2020

Where is the renewable energy NPHET?

If Ireland can step up when we are called upon to do so to deal with a dangerous pandemic, can we not find a way to […]
8th December 2020

Offshore: Delivering a National Marine Planning Framework

Principal Officer in the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Conor McCabe, outlines the delivery of a National Marine Planning Framework (NMPF) in the context […]
8th December 2020

A new Energy Strategy: Delivering policy options

Thomas Byrne, Director of Energy Strategy in the Department for the Economy (DfE) talks to David Whelan about the progress on delivering a long-term Energy Strategy […]
8th December 2020

Renewable generation: Power to deliver on economy and decarbonisation

Neasa Quigley, Senior Partner, Carson McDowell, looks ahead to the future of renewable energy in Northern Ireland. In the last month, the role of renewable energy […]
8th December 2020

Putting solar PV in the mix

Incentivising the microgeneration of energy through solar PV could be the key to diversifying Ireland’s energy mix. The potential future role of solar energy in Ireland’s […]
8th December 2020

Solar shines bright in 2020

The Irish Solar Energy Association (ISEA) aims to build on a successful year for the Irish solar industry and maximise its contribution to a clean and […]
8th December 2020

Marine Planning Legislation: Bill to be published in the New Year

The pre-legislative scrutiny process for the proposed Marine Planning and Development Management Bill commenced at the end of November 2020, at the same time that a […]
8th December 2020

Offshore Grid Development: Who will lead the way?

Offshore wind will play a crucial role in Ireland meeting its climate targets and reaching 70 per cent renewable electricity by 2030. There are currently several […]
8th December 2020

Offshore wind viability

The MaREI Centre’s Fiona Devoy McAuliffe outlines the findings of an industry-led analysis of offshore wind development in the context of the Government commitment to 5GW […]
8th December 2020

Infrastructure: Enabling transport decarbonisation

Lisa Ryan and Sarah La Monaca of the UCD Energy Institute discuss whether Ireland has enough EV chargering infrastructure to address ‘range anxiety’, a recognised barrier […]
8th December 2020

Our Zero e-Mission Future

Energy Ireland brought together Dr Paul Deane and Laura Mehigan from MaREI and Dara Lynott CEO of the Electricity Association of Ireland (EAI) to discuss the […]
8th December 2020

RenewableNI: Growing ambition

With the production of a new Energy Strategy for Northern Ireland underway, the region must be enabled for a new wave of renewables, says RenewableNI Head […]
8th December 2020

Heat and the city

Janette Webb, Co-Director of UK Energy Research Centre and Professor of Sociology of Organisations, Edinburgh University discusses the lack of progress on the decarbonisation of heat […]
8th December 2020

From brown to green

John Reilly, Head of Powergen Development at Bord na Móna, outlines the company’s transition under its strategy of ‘Brown to Green’. The implementation of the strategy […]
8th December 2020

Can renewable hydrogen be key to unlocking a decarbonised energy system for Ireland?

NUI Galway’s Rory Monaghan outlines some of the potential roles for renewable hydrogen in Ireland’s efforts to decarbonise the energy sector. Interest in hydrogen has historically […]
8th December 2020

Copenhagen: 100 per cent renewable gas by 2025

The city of Copenhagen has set an ambitious target to be carbon neutral by 2025. Executive Director of Denmark’s State of Green, Finn Mortensen, outlines the […]
8th December 2020

Realising our decarbonisation ambition

2021 is a defining year for climate action on the island of Ireland and a range of important measures are required to deliver on 2030 commitments, […]
8th December 2020

Renewable options for Northern Ireland

With a new Energy Strategy set to follow the UK Government’s lead on achieving net zero carbon by 2050, big decisions will be required on how […]
8th December 2020

Calor’s journey towards a low carbon future

With a commitment to being 100 per cent renewable by 2037, Calor is poised to help deliver a cleaner economy across the island, explains CEO, Duncan […]
8th December 2020

Energy storage and the grid

Innovative energy storage solutions will play an important role in ensuring the integration of renewable energy sources into the grid in the EU at the lowest […]
8th December 2020

Transforming the grid

Just over one year ago, EirGrid launched a new five-year strategy to transform the Irish electricity system. The strategy will ensure that renewable energy accounts for […]
8th December 2020

Northern Ireland’s renewable transition

Northern Ireland is squandering its position as a global leader in renewable energy, writes Patrick Keatley, lecturer in Energy Policy and Infrastructure at Ulster University. Hindsight […]
8th December 2020

Enabling a decarbonised future for business

Owners of one of the largest renewable portfolios in Ireland, Brookfield Renewable is driving change across the renewable landscape, making the energy market more accessible and […]
8th December 2020

Solar shines bright in RESS-1

Although wind projects were the largest beneficiaries of the results of the first auction under the new Renewable Energy Support Scheme (RESS-1) support for solar signalled […]
8th December 2020

Bioenergy: A role in heat and transport decarbonisation

Government support for an enhanced role for bioenergy in Ireland’s future energy mix has not been forthcoming with the major focus remaining on the electricity sector. […]
7th December 2020

Decarbonising Ireland: The energy challenge

John FitzGerald, Chair of the Climate Change Advisory Council, argues that the increased ambition to tackle climate change must be matched by implementation of new measures […]