Nephin Energy has signed a deal with Flogas, a subsidiary of listed company DCC, to supply all of the renewable gas generated by a new €50 million biomethane plant, located near Ballinrobe in Co Mayo, that has just begun construction and is expected to open in 2027.
Nephin says the plant will be the first commercial-scale biomethane facility in the country and will process 90,000 tonnes of farm waste annually, including manures and slurries, to generate more than 85 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of sustainable biomethane.
This is one of three anaerobic digestion (AD) plants that Nephin plans to build, with Flogas taking all of the renewable gas generated by the facilities. Nephin estimates that an AD plant of this size will contribute up to €200 million to the local economy over its 25-year lifetime.
Once operational, the three plants will deliver more than 250 GWh of sustainable, Irish produced, biomethane annually, which the company says is enough to heat more than 38,000 homes and businesses.
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It will also provide employment in the area and generate significant income for local farmers. Details of the two additional plants are to be announced later this year.
Minister of State at the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment Alan Dillon attended a ceremony on Thursday along with senior leaders from Nephin, Flogas and DCC, to mark the beginning of construction of the plant.
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The Minister said the deal between Nephin Renewable Gas and Flogas represented a “significant leap forward for Ireland’s green gas transition” and supported the Government’s target to produce 5.7 terawatt-hours of biomethane by 2030.
Tom O’Brien, group chief executive of Nephin Energy said the deal was a “first step toward our ambition of becoming Ireland’s leading biomethane development company”.
He told The Irish Times that his company would ultimately like to build 20 plants here over the next five to seven years.
“Partnering with Flogas ... accelerates our development pipeline while unlocking the economic and environmental benefits that biomethane can deliver to rural communities across Ireland,” he added.
According to John Rooney, managing director of Flogas, this deal will be the largest domestic biomethane agreement of its kind to date in Ireland, representing a significant boost for our agricultural sector and national net-zero progress.
Nephin RG is also part of the wider Nephin Group, which holds a 43.5 per cent stake in the Corrib Gas field. Nephin Group is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.
