The Government has been urged to address the avoidable dumping of clean power, as Social Democrats energy spokesperson Jennifer Whitmore TD warned Ireland is squandering progress amid the cost-of-l2iving and climate crises.

In a statement, Deputy Whitmore said: Figures released by EirGrid show that enough renewable energy to power up to half a million homes was lost in the first nine months of this year due to limitations on the electricity system.

"While renewable sources accounted for half of electricity generation last year, this progress is being squandered because of system capacity issues.

"The Government could benefit from looking at international best practice when it comes to battery storage. This involves surplus electricity being absorbed when renewable generation is high and released back into the grid when required. In Germany, for example, they have a system called BESS, where batteries are strategically placed in areas where the grid gets overloaded.

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"This is not about trying to reinvent the wheel – it is simply a case of getting serious about what needs to be done and doing it.

"I am deeply invested in this area and recently introduced a Bill aimed at reducing renewable energy wastage by making surplus electricity available to struggling households at no cost.

"Last year, more than half a billion euros in renewable energy was wasted. This is sinful when you consider there are more than 320,000 electricity accounts in arrears, with customers in Ireland paying the highest energy bills in Europe.

"The purpose of my Prevention of Energy Wastage Bill 2026 is to amend the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021 to provide a statutory basis for the utilisation of renewable electricity that would be otherwise wasted due to electricity system curtailment or constraint.

"Curtailment is what happens when a wind or solar farm is told to reduce its output because the system cannot safely absorb all the power that is available. Constraint is when there is a localised network limitation, and the power lines cannot handle the load.

"In both cases, there is capacity to generate energy, but that opportunity is being wasted. Around 10 per cent of available renewable electricity could not be used last year due to grid constraints and curtailment – and this figure has risen to 13 per cent for the first nine months of this year, according to EirGrid.

"My Bill seeks to ensure that otherwise wasted electricity is made available to electricity customers at no cost. If passed, it would further our national climate objectives, carbon budgets and the principle of just transition, while also contributing to the reduction of energy poverty."