12-05-2025
Ireland's grid: Do we need to rethink our energy resilience?
As extreme weather and geopolitical shocks strain power systems across Europe, some experts are concerned Ireland's heavy dependence on imported energy and lack of gas storage is leaving the country dangerously exposed.
Tonight's Upfront with Katie Hannon explores the risks to Ireland's energy supply — and the measures being considered to strengthen it.
"We could have no electricity overnight," Brian Ó Catháin, former Tullow Oil executive and chair of Causeway Energies, said in an interview prior to the programme. He noted that 80% of Ireland's gas supply comes through the UK via a single pumping station with two pipelines.
"100% of all the diesel is imported so every car, every lorry, is depending on imported diesel – apart from EVs. All our heating oil [is] all 100% imported," he added.
"With renewables, you still need gas when sun doesn't shine and wind doesn't blow," Mr Ó Catháin said.
"There is no credible alternative to gas, and we'll probably be using gas to 2050 - we have to think about where the gas comes from."
Spain, Portugal and France
His warnings come as recent power outages in Spain, Portugal and France — along with the widespread disruption caused by Storm Éowyn in Ireland earlier this year — have highlighted just how vulnerable energy systems can be in the face of extreme weather and climate-related shocks.
In April, millions of people across the Iberian Peninsula lost electricity after a rare atmospheric event disrupted transmission. Traffic lights, ATMs and mobile networks went offline, while many were left stranded in trains and lifts as night fell.
Closer to home, Storm Éowyn knocked out power to more than 768,000 customers in January, prompting fresh scrutiny of the country's energy infrastructure.
Former Green Party leader Eamon Ryan said the storm raised "fundamental questions about how we build resilience for our energy, telecommunications and forestry systems in a climate-changing world," Mr Ryan said.
"I do accept that we must continue to build a more resilient grid," the former Minister for Transport added.
"The Spanish and Portuguese outage happened but we just have to keep developing more resilient grids."
What can Ireland do?
Ireland remains one of the most energy import-dependent countries in the European Union, with 78.5% of its energy coming from abroad in 2023.
It is also one of just five EU member states without domestic gas storage, something which has been identified as a "considerable risk" in the event of damage to one or both of our subsea gas interconnectors.
In 2023 by the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) warned that in the event of a sustained gas shortage, existing secondary fuel stocks would not be enough to cover demand, particularly for electricity generation.
While contingency plans and annual emergency exercises are in place, some experts argue that without domestic storage or alternative supply routes, the system remains vulnerable.
Gas reserves
In March this year, the Government approved plans to develop a State-led floating liquified natural gas (LNG) terminal to serve as an emergency reserve. When operational, the facility could store enough gas to supply 200,000 homes for up to six months.
While plans have yet to be decided, the Department of the Environment has said that the site will need to have coastal access, be connected to the gas network, and be suitable for large-scale development.
More than 140 environmental and civil society groups have voiced their opposition to "any kind of LNG terminal in Ireland".
In an open letter in March 2024 several organisations, TDs, Senators, MEPs and Councillors called on then-Minister Ryan to halt plans for an LNG terminal.
"We do not support the building of any kind of LNG terminal in Ireland," the letter said.
"We call on you to stop progressing a strategic backup LNG terminal in Ireland in your Energy Security Strategy and call on you to maintain the historic world's first ban on the importation of fracked gas at this critical time".
As planning gets underway, questions remain about Ireland's energy resilience and whether the national grid can handle the demands being placed upon it.
