Seanad debates
Wednesday, 29 June 2022
Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters
Energy Policy
10:00 am
Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein)
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I want to raise what appears to be a complete lack of urgency regarding the new demand-side reduction strategy. Even before the war in Ukraine and the pressure this is placing on energy provision, there was a need to address demand-side pressure on our power supply. The previous Government's policy to make Ireland the data centre capital of the world is coming home to roost. Only yesterday, the Dáil debated the rushed legislation to allow for €400 million of temporary gas-powered generation. The Joint Committee on Environment and Climate Action, of which I am a member, did not have an opportunity to do pre-legislative scrutiny on this legislation. Instead we are being asked to fast track approval for the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities, CRU, to facilitate this gas-powered generation in order to keep the lights on over the winter. It seems that there is no such urgency to produce a demand-side response strategy, however. Months ago, the Joint Committee on Environment and Climate Action heard from the Demand Response Association of Ireland how the Department is yet to have a single meeting with stakeholders to even discuss the new strategy. This is unbelievable. The climate action plan has an ambition of 20% to 30% demand flexibility by 2030. Demand-side reduction turns energy users into virtual power plants by allowing users to adjust energy consumption during times of high stress on the grid. Through reducing electricity consumption, it has the same effect as increasing generation but without the need for additional expensive carbon-intensive infrastructure.
Previously seen as an emergency response to prevent blackouts, demand-side reduction in a modern electricity system will actually assist our transition to 80% renewables by 2030. Not only that, it can also help the public to become active participants in the decarbonisation process and to benefit from it. Across the water, the British grid is going to pay households to use less electricity at peak times. Households with smart meters will be able to choose to cut energy use when supplies are high and to financially benefit from doing so by receiving a credit on their bills. As a grid spokesperson said, "demand shifting has the potential to save consumers money, reduce carbon emissions and offer greater flexibility on the system". Opening that demand shifting to households means that it will not just be the big companies that benefit from this. It will also facilitates more flexibility on the grid, which means cheaper power for everybody.
When will the CRU bring forward the new demand-side reduction strategy and will that strategy include households? Big business is what has led to the pressures on the grid, therefore, it should not be the case that only big business benefits from demand-side strategies.
Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Senator Boylan for raising this important matter. The climate action plan sets out a road map to cut Ireland's greenhouse gas emissions by 51% by 2030 and to reach net zero emissions by 2050. Decarbonising Ireland's electricity system will play a vital role in this transition and, therefore, the Government has agreed a more ambitious commitment to increase the proportion of renewable electricity to up to 80% by 2030. Renewable electricity will also support the decarbonisation of other sectors such as transport and heat. Using renewable electricity to power vehicles and heat homes and offices is an essential step to a zero-carbon future. The climate action plan recognises the need for a range of supporting measures to enable the transformation of the electricity sector. This will involve the development of a balanced portfolio of technologies to facilitate the energy transition, including storage and demand-side response to support a grid with increased levels of renewable electricity.Demand-side response involves users of electricity reducing their usage from their normal or current consumption patterns when required. It is an increasingly important element of the management of electricity networks worldwide. Successfully lowering electricity demand ultimately avoids the cost and inconvenience of building new generators and transmission lines. Managing demand by changing the time electricity is used can allow greater use of renewable power and considerable savings to households and businesses. Demand-side management is currently used by EirGrid in managing the power system efficiently.
Action 100 of the 2021 climate action plan requires the energy regulator, the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities, CRU, to deliver an electricity demand-side strategy by the end of this year, following public consultation. This demand-side strategy will aim to have industrial, commercial and residential demand fully participating in supporting system needs with high levels of renewable generation, and seek to facilitate active participation by consumers and communities in the energy market. Key stakeholders will be EirGrid, ESB Networks and a variety of market participants. The Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications will also take a keen interest in the development of the strategy. The strategy will be expected to consider various demand-side management techniques, including energy efficiency measures and demand response measures.
Under the national smart metering programme, new electricity meters, systems and processes are being implemented by ESB Networks to provide energy users with improved and more accessible information that will help them better understand and manage their energy consumption, and will enable higher renewable electricity by encouraging flexible demand. Smart meters will give access to new tariffs and services and support participation in the transition to a carbon-neutral economy and society.
ESB Networks is currently working on the delivery of a new strategy, the National Network, Local Connections programme, which is designed to reinforce the electricity network to ensure it is fit for purpose to underpin a thriving economy. Central to the work is a commitment to ensure citizens and communities are empowered to access the grid like more commercial players. Empowering consumers to be participants in the energy transition will take many forms, including supporting them to generate and export excess electricity to the grid as well as to join groups active in the system such as through microgrid initiatives or demand-side management groups.
The unprecedented crisis in European energy, sparked by Russia’s indefensible war on Ukraine, has underscored the urgent need to expedite the energy transition and to ensure Europe capitalises on its renewable resources. This not only means finding ways to bring more renewables online but facilitating an agile and dynamic electricity grid that can respond to challenges in supply and demand, with demand-side responses playing an ever-critical role.
Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein)
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Nobody doubts that the unprecedented crisis in the European market is because of the war in Ukraine but the crisis in the Irish energy sector precedes the war. It is disappointing that the Minister of State did not acknowledge the fact that EirGrid's generating capacity statement, which came well before the war, stated that all new demand between now and 2030 would be from data centres. We are living out the consequences of Fine Gael's failed policy. I welcome that residential premises are proposed to be included but I do not hear the same urgency on this as there is with the gas-fired power generation we are rushing through. This is a way of doing the same job and making sure the lights stay on but without having to build very expensive infrastructure, which is carbon intensive and continues to produce carbon emissions. We need more urgency on this. The end of the year is too late, especially if a public consultation is required on the back of that.
Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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Demand-side response involves users of electricity reducing their usage from their normal or current consumption patterns when required. It is an increasingly important element of the management of electricity networks worldwide. It can also provide significant benefits for customers through reduced bills and gives them greater control over the energy they use and produce. Action 100 of the 2021 climate action plan sets out a specific task for the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities to publish and implement a new demand-side strategy. This involves the publication of a consultation on a 2030 electricity demand-side strategy in the third quarter of this year, which is not very far away, and the publication of a demand-side strategy in the fourth quarter. The Senator is saying that is some time away but we will have progress on this matter in the third quarter, which we are now heading into, with the publication of the demand-side strategy in the fourth quarter.