a A new action plan for large energy users primarily to build data centres will see almost €19 billion in public and private investment in the electricity network over the next five to 10 years, it is hoped.
The Government’s new action plan was launched on Tuesday by Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke and Minister for Energy Darragh O’Brien.
The plan’s central components include an ambitious upgrade of the network to accommodate large users. It is envisaged this cohort will use up to a third of all electricity in the State.
However, following the publication of the new policy for large energy users published by the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) in December, there will be an obligation on those users to themselves find green and renewable energy sources to power their centres and plants. Both Ministers insisted the new plan would be fully aligned with Ireland’s commitments to produce clean and renewable energy.
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Mr Burke told a media conference that Ireland was now a global leader as a location for data centres. He said the centres already employed 21,000 people directly, and their presence affected over 180,000 jobs in the ICT sector.
The plan also envisages the creation of green energy parks, the purpose of which is to provide renewable and clean energy.
The Government’s own investment commitment, Mr O’Brien said, was €3.5 billion, which would help attract significant private investment that, it was said, would see a total of €18.9 billion being pumped into the network.
Mr O’Brien said the plan would give security of supply and grid resilience, adding that Ireland would double energy capacity by 2040.
Asked whether this would have an implication for Ireland’s greenhouse gas emissions targets, Mr O’Brien argued emissions in Ireland have come down in recent years, despite a growing population.
He also said the Government’s aim was to increase the proportion of renewable energy from 41 per cent now to 80 per cent by 2030. He referred in particular to the substantial increase in the use of solar power in Ireland in recent years.
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“If anything, it will accelerate the delivery of our renewable energy production and our renewable energy capacity,” he said.
Mr Burke said legislation for private wires (essentially allowing data centres and other large users to set up their own private grid and bypass the national grid) would be published this year.
Environmental group Friends of the Earth has raised serious concerns regarding the , new plan. It warns it risks prioritising the interests of the data centre industry at the expense of households, existing businesses, and Ireland’s climate obligations. The group said it is “calling for immediate clarity that households will not foot the bill for the infrastructure and incentives to support green energy parks for data centres”.
CEO of Friends of the Earth Deirdre Duffy said “renewables must be used to decarbonise our existing homes and industries, not to fuel unchecked expansion of the data centre industry. We urgently need policies that prioritise decarbonisation and public benefit, rather than offering yet more incentives to a single sector. While the plan promotes ‘green energy parks’ it fails to acknowledge that massive new demand inevitably forces the grid to rely longer on highly polluting gas-fired power plants.”
