How citizen participation contributes to the energy transition
Clean and renewable energy transition
A clean and renewable energy transition means,
- Shifting energy away from high emission sources (fossil fuels), to low emission, or clean sources, such as renewable energy (e.g. wind, solar).
- More secure supplies of competitive and affordable energy to our citizens and businesses.
- As we transition to local energy sources such as wind and solar, backed up by batteries we will have more certainty in price and reliable energy supply for all our citizens.
We can all play our part by using less electricity, and using smart technology to reduce our personal carbon footprint and the carbon emissions of our electricity grid.
Ireland is now a world leader in wind energy production
Despite an increase in demand, the carbon intensity of our electricity supply has more than halved over the last 2 decades. This is mainly due to the increase in wind energy. Wind energy provided a record 35% of Irelands electricity in 2023. The Climate Action Plan target is to be net zero by 2050.
As we integrate more renewable energy into our electricity grid, we become less reliant on imported fossil fuels. Our dependency on imported energy sources is much greater than the EU average. This leaves us exposed to potential supply issues, geopolitical tensions and international market forces. In 2022 natural gas prices rose to approximately ten times the levels seen in 2020.
Electricity supply needs to match the demand
The greatest challenge of increasing the proportion of renewable energy in our electricity grid is matching supply to demand. Renewable energy supply varies with the weather – literally! We cannot switch on wind to generate electricity in the same way as fossil fuel power stations.
And demand varies over the time of day, week, year and supply must be generated to satisfy this fluctuating demand. People can’t cook dinner only when it’s windy! This balancing act is very challenging to meet efficiently. Under-supply causes brown-outs or blackouts and over-supply may go to waste (if it can’t be stored). The ability to use and store renewable energy when it’s available is critical to how quickly, securely and efficiently we can achieve the targets in the Climate Action Plan.
Our connections to international neighbours facilitate the export of electricity. These will support the transition and enhances our security of supply. There are currently 2 interconnectors between the island of Ireland and the UK.
The Celtic Interconnector is under construction and will create an electrical interconnection between Ireland and France. Providing the development of an integrated energy system for Europe with affordable, secure and sustainable energy. Eirgrid expect the construction to be complete in 2026.
Whatever the weather
The electricity to supply the daily peak demand (5-7pm) is generally provided by power generation stations run on imported fossil fuels. This is expensive both financially and environmentally. When the wind blows, electricity is cheap to generate both economically and environmentally. Renewable sources such as wind and solar have no fuel costs and lower emissions.
In effect, the cost to generate electricity varies with the weather and the time of day. This has always been the case and for many years, electricity suppliers have offered incentives to large commercial energy users to respond to demand at peak times. Similar benefits can be offered as smart services to domestic electricity users with smart meters.
People power
Our homes consume 27% of all electricity used in Ireland, so there is significant potential for householders to make a difference. This is where people power comes into the equation. The rollout of domestic smart meters enables customers to participate in the transition to a clean energy system. Smart meters are an essential part of a smarter system that runs on weather dependent renewable energy.
As we move through this transition, we need to adjust our demand patterns to enable efficient management of a grid running on renewables. We all need to become more aware of when we use electricity as well as how much we’re using for this new, clean energy system to work. Domestic smart meters allow suppliers to offer Smart Time of Use Tariffs (ToU). These tariffs vary the cost consumers pay per unit of electricity used at different times of the day. Financial incentives are offered for avoiding the use of electricity between peak hours of 5-7pm.
Smart meter data also helps the energy industry to improve their energy demand predictions. Overall, shifting when electricity is used will help balance electricity supply and demand nationwide, and allow more renewable energy to be used in the grid.