Ireland's security of energy supply adequate: green paper

Ireland's security of energy supply adequate: green paper

Dublin (Platts)--2Oct2006

Ireland's energy demand is forecast to grow by 2-3%/year out to 2020,
with continued heavy dependence on imported fossil fuels and a need to invest
in energy infrastructure, according to a green paper entitled, "Towards A
Sustainable Energy Future For Ireland" published October 1.
In order to maintain security of supply the government has put in place a
long-term initiative for the integration of Ireland with neighboring energy
markets. The development of the All-Island energy market is central to energy
policy. The delivery of further interconnection to Northern Ireland and to
Britain will be central to improving access to new supply sources.
A doubling of existing north-south interconnection and the provision of
500 MW of east-west electricity interconnection are to be completed by 2012.
Generation adequacy in electricity will be manageable up to 2009 but
maintaining and improving levels of plant availability continues to be a
critical priority, the paper warns.
There are a number of immediate proposals to develop new generation plant
in the south west of Ireland and it is acknowledged that the anticipated
growth in renewables, particularly intermittent technology, will require a
more flexible and responsive generation portfolio.
Under most scenarios, the existing gas transmission system is sufficient
to cope with reasonable expectations of demand. Ireland's Commission for
Energy Regulation and its Northern Ireland counterpart, the NIAER, will work
together in the future to provide a comprehensive overview of security of gas
supply on an all-island basis.
The Department of Natural Resources will commission a report later this
year to review the security of Ireland's access to oil. The review will
include the cost-benefits of possible oil infrastructure interconnection with
Europe and/or the UK, possible pipeline distribution within Ireland, strategic
supply strategies, strategic oil storage enhancements, risk analysis and
contingency planning.

For similar stories, take a trial to Platts Power in Europe at
http://www.platts.com/Request%20More%20Information/

Please visit: www.platts.com

Their coverage of energy matters is extensive!!.