Eirgrid

  • Energy storage and flexibility

    System operators warn of System Alerts risk this winter

    EirGrid and SONI issued their Winter Outlook for 2020-21 on 15 October in which they warned that if high generator forced outage rates continue over the winter period there is a risk of System Alerts. The transmission system operators (TSOs) said the all-island capacity margin this winter is predicted to be 929MW...

  • Low carbon generation

    New policy measures needed to drive renewable generation

    Published on 24 August, a new report by Energy Storage Ireland and the Irish Wind Energy Association (IWEA) called for action to strengthen Ireland’s electricity grid. The second of a series of four studies which make up the government’s 70 by 30 Implementation Plan, Saving Power outlines how to minimise dispatch down and increase the use...

  • Low carbon generation

    All-Island wind dispatch-down rises year-on-year

    On 17 September, EirGrid published its Annual Renewable Energy Constraint and Curtailment Report 2019 which sets out the amount of wind and, for the first time, solar energy, that is available but cannot be used by the system (i.e. the dispatch-down of energy). Overall, the dispatch-down of energy from wind in Ireland...

  • Energy storage and flexibility

    EirGrid and SONI assess future demand and generation landscape

    Transmission system operators (TSOs) EirGrid and SONI have issued the All-Island Generation Capacity Statement 2020-29 that sets out expected electricity demand together with the level of generation capacity that will be required over the next ten years.  Issued on 27 August, the Statement said RoI demand is increasing, and is forecast...

  • Low carbon generation

    RESS-1 application closing date is further extended

    With a lot of uncertainty around the impacts of COVID-19 on global supply chains and renewable project delivery we are starting to see the effects in the Irish Energy market, notably the announcement that prequalification for the Renewable Energy Support Scheme in Ireland will be extended. In December 2019, the...

  • Energy storage and flexibility

    Changes: Demand falling in SEM

    With the unexpected arrival of coronavirus there has been significant a shift in human behaviour. We are now two weeks removed from the Irish Government’s instruction to close schools and message advising businesses to allow employees work from home where possible, we wonder what has the impact been on energy...

  • Net zero corporates and ESG

    Editor’s Pick Ireland | Clean Energy Package: what does it really mean?

    The Capacity Market Code removes or restricts payments to fossil fuel generators and allows cross border participation in Capacity markets, arising from the Clean Energy Package (CEP). We look at some of the other potential changes in the way EirGrid and SONI operate our energy system arising from the implementation of the...

  • Energy storage and flexibility

    Wind Of Change: What’s this, more RESS talk!

    There’s no shortage of speculation regarding the upcoming Renewable Energy Support Scheme (RESS) auctions, however, we should spare a thought for our friends in Eirgrid who own the challenge of operating this relatively highly dominated renewable energy saturated system. This challenge is getting tougher, with the forecasted additional wind and...

  • Low carbon generation

    Always sunny in RESS: The gang gets an auction

    With the excitement around the potential for a rejuvenated renewable market, it is easy to overlook just how few projects could get a RESS contract at the auctions this June. With between 1GWh – 3GWh available, the competition could be high. Here, James Goldsmith looks at the size of the...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Editor’s Pick Ireland | Taking advantage of the opportunities in RESS

    The Renewable Energy Support Scheme (RESS) has been designed to replace the previous Renewable Energy Feed-in Tariff (REFIT) schemes that closed in December 2015. The RESS scheme is designed to help promote the generation of electricity from renewable sources and will ultimately help Ireland achieve some of its Climate Action...

  • Low carbon generation

    Winds of change: Analysing SEM wind forecast accuracy

    Following the publication of the Tomorrow’s Energy Scenarios (TES) 2019, we can expect to see greater penetration of wind generation in the coming 20 years, with installed capacity forecast between 6.0GW to 8.2GW by 2040. As the growth in wind generation continues, forecasting wind accurately will become increasingly important in order to...

  • Low carbon generation

    The day after tomorrow: Onshore wind capacity

    The Irish transmission system operator, EirGrid, published its Tomorrow’s Energy Scenarios (TES) 2019 Report on 18 October. In this edition of the blog, we explore how an increase in installed onshore wind capacity will affect the Irish electricity grid based on three credible 2040 pathways set out by EirGrid. Click here to...

  • Regulation and policy

    D:Ream: EirGrid’s new strategy

    EirGrid unveiled their new strategy for 2020 – 2025 at a blockbuster event last week in Dublin. Headlining the event was the legendary Brian Cox and the EirGrid choir who both made fantastic appearances. Amongst the glitz and the glam of it all however, there were serious announcements from EirGrid...

  • Energy storage and flexibility

    Inertial dampeners – power system frequency management

    A challenge for a system with 70% renewable electricity, as posited in the Climate Action Plan (CAP), will be managing frequency. Recent experience of our neighbouring market, Great Britain (GB), suggests this challenge may have to be faced in the near term. GB experienced two frequency events during 11 July,...

  • Energy storage and flexibility

    Tomorrow’s energy today – Renewable transition pathways

    EirGrid published its bi-annual Tomorrow's Energy Scenarios 2019 consultation on 28 June, outlining scenarios for the future development of Ireland’s electricity future, over a 20-year timeframe. It maps out three scenarios intended to outline a range of credible pathways to the renewable energy transition, and what these would mean for the transmission system...

  • Energy storage and flexibility

    Operating the 2030 system: To 90% SNSP and beyond!

    Last week the Department of Communication, Climate Action and Environment (DCCAE) published the Climate Action Plan 2019, which sets out ambitious targets for Ireland to meet its decarbonisation obligations. For the electricity sector, this means 70% of all electricity generated will come from renewable sources by 2030. In this blog, we look at what...

  • Low carbon generation

    There is a light that never goes out: T-4 CRM qualification

    On 8 March the summary qualification results for the upcoming 2022/23 T-4 capacity auction were released, breaking down those qualified to bid by technology type. As previously noted, this auction is an important one as it will give an indication of the new capacity seeking to connect to the Irish...

  • Low carbon generation

    Old friends: the hidden good side of the EU

    As uncertainty around Brexit continues, it is important to reiterate some of the work that the EU and European Commission (EC) carries out behind the scenes of the energy industry. In particular, this week we look at the EU Sysflex project, which is being led by EirGrid and SONI, having...

  • Low carbon generation

    Bright side of the Road – transmission strategy for data centres

    A presentation by Host Ireland, in partnership with Bitpower, at the recent Data Centres Ireland exhibition at the RDS presented information from Q3 2018 showing the current and future growth of data centres in Ireland, most of which are located in the Dublin region. Turner & Townsend’s Data Centre Cost Index...

  • Low carbon generation

    Clarity urgently needed to unlock Ireland’s offshore wind potential

    Ireland has some of Europe’s best wind resource. And yet, the large-scale deployment of the technology has fallen behind other markets largely as a result of a lack of strong policy support – it is more than 14 years since Arklow Bank, the country’s only operational wind farm was fully...

  • Low carbon generation

    Coming the long way: wind forecast and imbalance prices

    Last week wind generation accounted for 56% of the generation mix on an all-island basis. The market also saw significant volatility in the Balancing Market (BM), with the Single Electricity Market Operator (SEMO) receiving pricing disputes related to early trading in the BM. While there has been much discussion about...

  • Energy storage and flexibility

    Just can’t get enough: Irish grid stability on a changing system

    Last week, EirGrid informed the market of another delay to the volume capped DS3 procurement. This mechanism is to allow the System Operator (SO) to obtain from the market system services necessary to balance the system. While the procurement delay may cause some disquiet in the market these commercial arrangements...

  • Low carbon generation

    Don’t let me down: I-SEM interconnector hedging

    Interconnection is important for Ireland and Northern Ireland’s security of supply; Eirgrid’s most recently published Generation Capacity Statement showed capacity deficits by 2021 without the subsea connections between GB and the island of Ireland. Last week, the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities (CRU) launched a consultation on Element Power’s...

  • Low carbon generation

    “We are the champions” – Ireland hits 65% SNSP

    On 13 April, Eirgrid announced that it was now able to handle 65% variable (non-synchronous) renewable generation on the system at any given time. Eirgrid said in its statement that the island of Ireland’s power system is the first in the world to be able to accommodate this level of...

  • Low carbon generation

    Eirgrid and DS3 – a lot done, more to do

    On 29 March Eirgrid published its long-awaited consultation on the Delivering a Secure, Sustainable Electricity System (DS3) System Services Volume Capped Competitive Procurement. It provided some welcome detail on the next steps for DS3, but there are residual questions outstanding which make it difficult for current investors to ascertain risks...

  • Low carbon generation

    Ireland’s thermal plants sail into probing wind

    The level of wind penetration in Ireland is one of the highest in Europe. This has already had some major impacts on the market, including depressed wholesale prices; reduced running hours for some thermal plants; and curtailment of wind output. This week’s blog considers wider interactions of wind generation with...

  • Low carbon generation

    Capacity Remuneration Mechanism in Ireland

    Energy Spectrum Ireland comment On 20 December 2017 EirGrid and SONI published the provisional Capacity Auction results for the 2018-19 Capacity Remuneration Mechanism (CRM) T-1 auction, held on the 15th December 2017. Subject to approval the Regulatory Authorities, the final results at a Capacity Market Unit level will be published...