Building Ireland's renewable gas future
The Taoiseach Micheál Martin broke ground to officially mark the commencement of construction for the new Central Grid Injection (CGI) facility in Mitchelstown. A key initiative of Gas Networks Ireland, this facility represents a €32m investment and is a transformative step in Ireland's transition towards renewable energy, enabling the injection of biomethane into the national gas network.
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Mitchelstown CGI
The Mitchelstown CGI will facilitate the injection of biomethane, a carbon neutral renewable gas, into Ireland's gas network.
The Mitchelstown CGI facility is not an anaerobic digestion (AD) plant and therefore does not receive feedstocks or produce biomethane on site. In practical terms, a CGI facility acts as a connection point to the national gas network, enabling biomethane that has been produced at separate anaerobic digestion (AD) plants to be injected into the gas grid.
The facility is designed to support independent third party biomethane producers located too far from the existing gas network to connect directly by pipeline. Instead, biomethane can be transported by trailer to the CGI facility and injected into the network there. This is essential renewable gas infrastructure that enables biomethane producers in more remote locations to participate in the renewable gas sector.
Construction update
After mobilising to site in August, Gas Networks Ireland’s project delivery team and construction partner GMC Utilities have completed some of the following works on the Mitchelstown CGI project.
- Implementation of a significant traffic management plan to ensure safe access and egress for site personnel and delivery vehicles.
- Preparations are underway to commence the concrete apron works.
- Building bases for the biomethane networks entry facility and packaged boiler unit have been poured along with ducting manholes.
- Foundations for the electrical and instrumentation building and the welfare office building are now in place and structural fabrication is underway.
- Delivery of a new access way to the Corracunna above ground installation (AGI) has started with laying of underground services such as manholes and ducting for both power supply and telecommunications to the new CGI.
In January, the first 20-tonne biomethane network entry facility (BNEF) skid was delivered and installed at the Mitchelstown central grid injection facility.
The new BNEF unit contains a range of instruments and equipment which ensure that the biomethane is compliant with all required standards and regulations before it enters the gas network.
The BNEF unit will provide the renewable gas entry point for biomethane being delivered to site and facilitate it being transported via the national gas network to end users. This will be a vital piece of renewable gas infrastructure for biomethane producers that are not located close enough to the gas network for a direct connection.
In addition to the delivery and installation of both the biomethane network entry facility skid and fuel gas skid, our project delivery team and construction partner GMC Utilities Group have completed several other major milestones on the Mitchelstown central grid injection project.
All concrete bases for the key plant and equipment — including four PRS units, two boiler house units, fuel gas skid, flare unit, generator, and compressor — have now been completed. The construction team has also completed 40% of the concrete apron, which includes nine decanting bays and over 250m² of poured concrete.
Significant progress has been made on underground services, with 85% of the ducting and manholes finished and drainage works are ongoing, including the completed installation of the large capacity 800m³ attenuation tank and the oil separator tank.
The steel structure and roof are fully completed on the electrical instrumentation and welfare building, and blockwork is nearing completion for both. The 71,000 litre septic tank has also been successfully installed. Mechanical works have also continued to advance, with 85% of pipework now in place.
GRAZE gas project
The GRAZE (Green Renewable Agricultural Zero Emissions) Gas Project is led by Gas Networks Ireland and is supported by more than €8.4m in funding from the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications' (DECC) Climate Action Fund, as part of the Government's national energy security framework. The purpose of the project will be to show how Ireland can diversify its gas supplies, by speeding up the roll-out of renewable gases like biomethane.
Project deliverables
- Development of a central grid injection (CGI) facility near Mitchelstown in Co. Cork
- Vehicle fund for compressed natural gas (CNG) trucks
Benefits of the GRAZE project
An indigenous renewable gas industry in Ireland would support numerous Irish and European climate policy targets and initiatives. In addition to addressing Ireland's security of supply, the GRAZE project and others like it will also provide significant opportunities and benefits for rural communities and difficult to decarbonise sectors of the Irish economy.
- When operating at full capacity, the Mitchelstown CGI will have the potential to inject up to 700 GWh of renewable biomethane into the gas network, contributing approximately 12% of the Government's 2030 biomethane target
- Once fully operational, the CGI facility will also result in a saving of 130,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions per annum. Anaerobic digestion is also a key technology that can support the reduction of methane emissions arising from natural decomposition of wastes and residues, as noted in the recent EU Methane Strategy*
- The new facility will have the capacity to receive renewable gas produced from farm and food waste from approximately 20 local producers.
- In addition to reducing on-farm emissions and supporting more sustainable supply chains, the establishment of a sustainable renewable gas industry in the region would also provide significant opportunities for the local community from the sale of biomethane, feedstock used to produce the renewable gas, and a bio-fertiliser that is a by-product of the process, and facilitate sustainable circular economies, with businesses powering their operations via renewable gas made from their own waste.
- Digestate outputted from the AD process can be used as a replacement to conventional fertilisers on farms. Correct application of digestate derived bio-fertiliser does not have the level of run-off and emissions associated with raw animal slurry use and is one of the enablers for enhancing carbon stocks in soils.
Glossary
Biomethane is a carbon-neutral renewable gas. Biogas is initially produced from farm and food waste through a process known as anaerobic digestion where the greenhouse gases created by agricultural and food waste emissions are captured and converted into energy. To be injected into the gas network, this biogas can must be upgraded to biomethane and meet the quality standards as required by Gas Networks Ireland.
The material that is used in anaerobic digestion is called feedstock. This can include animal slurries and crop residues. What goes into a digester determines what comes out, so careful choice of feedstocks is essential. Securing a reliable feedstock supply is fundamental to profitable anaerobic digestion.
Digestate is the material remaining after the anaerobic digestion of feedstock. Digestate can be applied as a bio-fertiliser to grass and tillage lands as a sustainable alternative to chemical fertiliser application, offsetting carbon emissions from conventional fertilisers.
Government support
To support delivery of the GRAZE project, Gas Networks Ireland have received over €8.4 million in funding under the Climate Action Fund, which is administered by the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications.
The purpose of the project will be to show how Ireland can diversify its gas supplies, by speeding up the roll-out of renewable gases like biomethane. Projects such as this will reduce our reliance on imported fossil fuels. The Government's National Energy Security Framework, which sets out how Ireland is prepared to deal with potential shocks to our energy system, has highlighted the need for alternatives to natural gas, such as biomethane and hydrogen, to be developed to enhance Ireland's security of supply and provide additional diversification for Ireland's energy mix.
This new facility in Mitchelstown and our existing facility in Cush, County Kildare will contribute to our broader climate goals - of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 51% by 2030 and reaching net zero emissions by 2050.