RENEWABLE GENERATION
BOTH THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND AND NORTHERN IRELAND HAVE PLEDGED TO GENERATE 80% OF THEIR ELECTRICITY FROM RENEWABLE SOURCES BY 2030…
Ireland produces a record 40% of electricity from renewables in August
A record amount of renewable energy was produced for the Republic of Ireland in August, according to provisional data from grid operator EirGrid. Around 898GWh of electricity was generated from grid-connected windfarms in August, the highest ever figure recorded for the month. It provided 34% of electricity used in Ireland, representing an increase from the previous August record of 867GWh set last year. Meanwhile, grid-scale solar power surpassed the historic 100GWh mark for the second month in a row in August, with 103GWh of electricity produced, accounting for 3.9% of demand last month and falling slightly behind the all- time record set in July. Overall, 40% of electricity used in August came from renewables, with total electricity system demand standing at 2,639GWh for the month. Gas generation accounted for 37% of all electricity used in August (977GWh), with 18.6% imported via interconnection (492GWh), 3% coming from coal (78GWh), and the remaining 1% from other sources. EirGrid is responsible for leading Ireland’s transition to a low carbon
future so that 80% of electricity can come from renewables by 2030, as set out in Government targets. Diarmaid Gillespie, Director of System Operations at EirGrid, said: “While we had a bit more wind power on the system compared to August 2023, the amount of solar energy generated for the grid almost doubled from the same month last year, which shows the rate of progress we’re seeing in integrating different types of renewables onto the electricity grid.” Northern Ireland has also pledged to generate 80% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030. Latest quarterly statistics published by the NI Statistics and Research Agency indicate 45.8% of total metered electricity consumption in NI was generated from metered renewable sources located in NI for the 12-month period to June 2024. It represents an increase of 0.3 percentage points on the previous 12-month period. For the 12-month period ending June, 7,244GWh of electricity was consumed in NI. Over the same period, wind renewable generation was 2,731GWh, with non-wind renewable generation contributing another 588GWh, totalling 3,319GWh of renewable generation.
Over the last decade, total electricity consumption in Northern Ireland has fallen by 11.2%, from 8,162GWh for the 12-month period ending June 2014 to 7,244GWh for the 12-month period ending June 2024). Total renewable generation has increased by 115.6% over the same period, from 1,539GWh for the 12-month period ending June 2014 to 3,319GWh for the 12-month period ending June 2024. The volume of non-wind renewable generation, including biogas, biomass, solar pv, and landfill gas, has remained relatively stable in recent years with 588GWh generated in the 12 months ending June 2024. Northern Ireland Networks Ltd owns the transmission and distribution network and operates the distribution network, which transports electricity to around 920,000 customer connections. The System Operator for Northern Ireland operates the transmission network. www.eirgrid.ie/news/new-renewable- power-records-august www.datavis.nisra.gov.uk/Economy/ electricity-consumption-and-renewable- generation-report.html
90 | IRELAND’S ELECTRICAL MAGAZINE
FOLLOW US ON:
www.elecmagazine.com
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online