ENB Pub Note: While it is wonderful for Ireland to be in the top destinations for renewable investments, its consumers are paying the bill. Ireland ranks as the third highest electricity for consumers in the EU, and we have seen globally a direct correlation between renewable energy and high electricity prices for consumers. On my podcast, I would love to visit with any industry experts on this topic from the investment, renewable, grid, oil, gas, or coal industries to get more facts.
Ireland is the 13th most attractive country in the world for renewable energy investments, according to a survey by EY.
That’s the same ranking it held in the EY Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Index last year.
It comes at a time when investments in wind and solar has surged on the back of concerns around fossil fuel prices and energy insecurity.
“It took an awful lot to maintain that ranking,” said Stephen Prendiville, head of sustainability at EY Ireland. “Globally we’ve seen this massive surge [in renewable investment], spurred on by a desire to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and imports, and the volatility of cost.
“We actually needed a couple of key things to occur to just maintain 13th.”
The increase in companies here buying renewable energy through direct contractual agreement with producers helped Ireland’s ranking, he said.
The recent offshore wind auction has also helped to improve the country’s attractiveness.
Mr Prendiville was confident that Ireland’s ranking would improve in the future, assuming it can follow through on some of the plans around its energy infrastructure.
“Around the world, grid connectivity is the noted bottleneck for renewable energy and we’re no different,” he said. “What stands out for Ireland, though, is we have a strategy and a plan and we have a number of players, including ESB and Eirgrid, that are now committed to that grid transition.”
He said improvements to the planning system will also help Ireland’s attractiveness.
“We obviously have reform processes that are in investigation right now, so I’d be confident that with those two ingredients coming to fruition, hopefully this year, we would run up those rankings,” he said.
continued to top the EY index – with the US Inflation Reduction Act helping to cement its position at the top.
The act earmarks $369 billion for investment in energy security and climate change, and has helped to pull a significant amount of global interest towards the country.
This has also led to concerns in Europe that US firms will have an unfair advantage.
Mr Prendiville said it is important the European Union continues to develop its own policies and supports to ensure it can keep attracting investment in this region.
“The US Inflation Act has obviously created more opportunity for developers and technologists to consider that jurisdiction for developing more renewables,” he said. “It’s core focus for Europe to figure out what its response is.
“We’ve got the EU Green Deal, which is significant in itself, and when you take all of the other ingredients including stability of policy direction, commitment to decarbonisation of our energy systems, that would still set us apart quite a bit from the US at the moment.”
