Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment Darragh O'Brien has highlighted rapid advances in integrating large-scale electricity storage into Ireland's grid, telling the Energy Storage Ireland conference in Dublin that deployment has accelerated in recent years.

He said industry and Electricity Storage Ireland have played a central role in delivering and connecting around 800 MW (megawatts) of grid-scale capacity since 2018. These systems, he noted, enhance flexibility, cut the 'dispatch down' of renewable generation and shift surplus clean electricity to times of higher demand, helping to lower reliance on costlier gas-fired plants and placing downward pressure on bills.

O'Brien welcomed the publication of Energy Storage Ireland's report 'Money Saver: How Storage Lowers Energy Costs'. Prepared by international energy consultancy AFRY, it concludes that storage could deliver "over €102 million in annual savings for consumers, while reducing emissions and making better use of Ireland's renewable energy resources".

-- Advertisement --

The Minister reiterated the Government's commitment to electricity storage and set out actions for departments, agencies and stakeholders to sustain delivery. The Department will publish a glide path to 2040, establishing a long-term target for storage alongside measures to provide revenue certainty, supporting a robust pipeline of projects.

Commenting, Minister O'Brien said: "Throughout 2024, 2025 and 2026, reviews by all the key stakeholders of both the regulatory and market frameworks have delivered multiple positive impacts on the electricity storage landscape.

"Since full access was granted to the electricity markets last November, electricity storage has already set new peak output records of almost 500 MW. This peak delivery is comparable to that of a large gas power station and has contributed to an estimated reduction in renewable dispatch down of up to 7%.

"The recent decision by the Commission for Regulation of Utilities [CRU] on storage tariffs is expected to promote increased storage participation in the electricity markets, driving down consumer costs.

"I am delighted to see that there is another 2.3 GW (Giga Watts) of storage with planning permission and connection contracts in the pipeline. I fully support this strong pipeline – to deliver cleaner, more affordable, electricity for Irish consumers."

The Minister said he remains confident that continued collaboration between industry, Government and key stakeholders will deliver the storage capacity required to support Ireland's energy transition in a timely and cost-effective way.