Renewables are set to play a key role in extending the life of the €3.6 billion Corrib facility in Co Mayo.
The Corrib field off the northwest coast is Ireland’s only natural gas reservoir, supplying about 30 per cent of the State’s needs. Owners Nephin Energy and Vermilion are working on plans to extend the facility’s life when reserves run out in the early years of the next decade.
Renewable energy, particularly wind and green hydrogen, are likely to play a key role in this plan, which the partners hope to have completed drafting by the end of this year. The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, shareholder in Nephin Energy, is creating a sustainable fund specifically to back renewable energy and other such projects.
The board, which runs Canada’s state pension scheme, is understood to be keen to support the Corrib owners’ plans, which will tie in with its aim of backing sustainable projects. Data shows that Ireland’s northwest coast has some of highest wind penetration in Europe, offering scope for development of electricity generation.
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The onshore terminal at Bellanaboy has a connection to the Irish natural gas network. Its owners believe this could allow it to produce green hydrogen on site that could be shipped via the system.
Hydrogen is produced by charging water with electricity, separating the gas from oxygen. Renewable-generated electricity is used to produce the “green” version of the gas. Burning the gas recombines it with oxygen, producing water, so greenhouse gas emissions are virtually non-existent. Hydrogen is increasingly seen as a likely alternative to fossil fuels, particularly for transport and power generation.
Bord Gáis Energy plans two new natural gas-fired electricity generating stations for Dublin and Westmeath that will be designed to run on hydrogen when that becomes commercially available. State company Gas Networks Ireland, which operates the natural gas transmission system, has a green hydrogen pilot programme.
The Corrib facility employs 100 people with expertise and experience in the energy industry. Taking all its advantages into account, the owners believe it presents the State with an opportunity to unify conventional and renewable resources to develop a total energy solution.
Extending the gasfield’s life could involve tying other nearby reservoirs likely to hold viable quantities of the fuel to Corrib’s existing infrastructure. Exploration businesses operating in the region have identified several possible prospects relatively close by, though these have yet to be proven.
If one were shown to have viable quantities of gas in coming years, connecting it to Corrib’s infrastructure could allow it to begin production by the end of this decade.
Natural gas is used to generate about half of Irish electricity needs. It is also used to heat homes and by industrial and commercial customers.
