Mark Stevenson ( first left ), Director of Regulation at firmus energy presented an update on “Decarbonising the Gas network” at the Northern Ireland Energy forum on 17th September at the Titanic exhibition centre, Belfast, organised by Agenda NI.
He outlined the achievements of the Natural Gas industry so far, in reducing Carbon Dioxide emissions by over 1.2 million tonnes of CO2 in 2023 alone, following conversion from other fuels, mainly oil. Putting this in context, he advised that 1 tonne of CO2 is equivalent in volume to 1000, large,1 meter diameter beach balls.
Moving on, Mark updated the delegates on the progress of Biomethane, advising that the first injection happened in quarter 4 of 2023 in the Evolve network and that a recent Request for Information had identified 1.5 TWh which could be injected into the existing gas network by 2030. This amount of Biomethane could supply 46% of the total Industrial and Commercial gas usage in NI.
With Biomethane now getting support from our Government as an important part of the decarbonising mix ,the immediate focus for the Natural gas network operators is to implement a 2030 biomethane injection target of 1.5 TWh, establish a Biomethane support mechanism and develop a network plan to accommodate biomethane injection.
Mark reiterated the main benefits of Biomethane which include, the potential for an agri-centric biomethane sector, rural economy stimulus, improved water quality, circular economy, carbon reduction and security of energy supply.
