Ireland to Ditch More Fossil Fuels for Renewables

Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Ireland aims to double the amount of renewable energy in its electricity mix to 16% by 2020 as part of a long-term move away from fossil fuels.

The government launched its White Paper: Ireland's Transition to a Low Carbon Energy Future 2015-2030 this week, outlining a plan to reduce the country's energy-related carbon emissions by between 80% and 95%, compared to 1990 levels, by 2050. Today, renewables account for 8.6% of Ireland's total energy, and almost 23% of electricity demand. By 2020, the goal is to have renewables account for 16% of total energy demand and 40% of electricity demand. Fossil fuels currently account for around 92% of total energy production in Ireland, a figure that will drop to 84% by 2020.

"For the first time an Irish Government has set its course on the eventual elimination of fossil fuels from our energy system," said Minister for Energy Alex White , launching the paper in Dublin's Mansion House. "We will only achieve this ambitious degree of decarbonisation by engaging all citizens in energy policy and its implementation. Meeting the challenge of global warming can no longer be confined to the realm of international treaties or Government decisions. It is about changing the way we heat our homes and businesses. It is about reassessing how we travel. It is about participating in decisions about the infrastructure needs of a low carbon Ireland."

Consumers will be expected to pay more for their electricity as part of the transition away from traditional forms of electricity production, although White said the government hoped "to minimise that cost.". Onshore wind makes up the bulk of Ireland's renewable energy, contributing 81% of renewable electricity in 2014. The White Paper outlined plans to expand the rollout of offshore wind, bioenergy, solar and marine power.

Contentious topics, including nuclear power and hydraulic fracturing or "fracking," were not fully addressed in the White Paper. White said both technologies were being evaluated separately, although he said he doubted Ireland was big enough to justify the cost of building a nuclear power plant.

There is no date given for the decommissioning of the Moneypoint coal-fired power plant in Clare, Ireland's largest fossil fuel-powered facility, with a generating capacity of 915 megawatts (MW) from three units commissioned between 1985 and 1987.

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