The Irish Governments ‘Climate Action plan 2019’ includes the target for 70% renewable electricity by 2030. This will involve Ireland more than doubling its renewable generation capacity in the coming decade to account for a growing electricity demand. The renewable capacity is planned to come from wind and solar energy resources. These sources by their nature are intermittent and variable, and there are challenges associated with their efficient integration onto the electricity system. In recent years, Ireland’s existing renewable generation fleet (primarily onshore wind) have had their output constrained/curtailed due to inefficiencies of the electricity system. Addressing these inefficiencies will be key to Ireland realising its climate ambitions.
Long term energy storage facilities are part of the solution as they can capture excess renewable electricity during periods of an oversupply. Hydrogen is a long-term storage option that can be deployed to absorb surplus renewable electricity. The major benefit of hydrogen is its versatility as a fuel, which has end uses across the energy system. In addition, hydrogen produced from renewable electricity can be referred to as ‘green hydrogen’ and is a zero-emission fuel in hard to decarbonise sectors such as heat and transport.
Green hydrogen is the focus of this research study, with the primary objective of determining a business case for the production of green hydrogen. To determine this, it was necessary to analyse the entire value chain of green hydrogen from the production source to the end user/consumer. This included a review of hydrogen delivery methods and applications in the heat and transport sectors in Ireland. The analysis concluded that green hydrogen production from renewable electricity requires financial support and policy mechanisms to encourage its uptake in the heat and transport sectors. The potential socio-economic benefits arising from the provision of supporting policy for green hydrogen were also explored as part of the study.