Ireland’s national biomethane strategy and the REPower EU Biomethane Industrial Partnership will be informed by Conference recommendations

Now is the time to harness the full potential of the biomethane sector to accelerate AD biomethane production,  given the EU Commission target of 35 bcm of sustainable biomethane by 2030, the ambition from RGFI  (representing the full supply chain and industry collaboration)  for 2.5TWh by 2030 and 9.5TWh by 2050.

That is the message from RGFI Chair, JP Prendergast, who will be welcoming delegates and speakers, to the Ireland Biomethane Conference on 10,11 November at Clontarf in Dublin.  REGISTER HERE

To achieve these targets, will require 150 to 200 large scale agricultural Anaerobic Digestion plants to be developed within eight years.

“Together, we must inform the Irish Government’s National Biomethane Strategy and Roadmap to achieve the ambition under the REPowerEU Plan and Biomethane Industry Partnership (BIP), and importantly the outputs from the Conference will contribute to that process.

The Ireland Biomethane Conference is  also an opportunity to demonstrate to Government the strength and depth of the biomethane industry in Ireland. ”

Minister Charlie McConalogue will provide the opening address at the plenary session on Agriculture and Biomethane and the programme will examine, from multiple angles, how Ireland can mobilise for AD production: from the international as well as national perspectives, through policy, legislation, capital funding, competitive financing and planning, to R&D and innovative technologies.

Discussions and workshops will involve leading experts from the US, Europe and Ireland as well as  industry and Government representatives.

Mr JP Prendergast said “Biomethane has the potential to  reduce Europe’s dependency on natural gas from Russia in a cost-effective way. At the same time, it can substantially contribute to energy security, storage, and price stability while supporting an integrated net-zero energy system, diversifying farmer’s incomes and ensuring a circular bioeconomy approach.

Undoubtedly biomethane can be an integral part of developing a sustainable farming sector, however the industry in Ireland is in its infancy and will therefore need policy, regulatory and capital funding support,  with the establishment of a renewable heat obligation scheme, as well as significant scaling up and cost-efficiencies to contribute at the scale and pace  envisaged by both the EU Commission and the Irish Government to meet its objectives”.

Conference SPEAKERS TO INCLUDE:

• Charlie McConalogue, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine
• Marc Pacheco Dean of the Massachusetts Senate
• Jorge Pinto Antunes, Deputy Head of Cabinet of the Commissioner for Agriculture & Rural Development
• Harmen Dekker, CEO European Biogas Association

Finance / Funding for AD Biomethane

• Nick Ashmore, Director of the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF)
• Russell Smyth,  Director of KPMG Sustainable Futures
• Hans van den Boom,  Investment Manager, Rabobank

 Industrial decarbonisation

• Milenko Matosic, Senior Expert Renewable Gases at German Energy Agency (DENA)
• Tom O’Brien, Managing Director Nephin Energy – Ireland’s largest domestic producer of natural gas
• Brendan O Riordan,  Gas Networks Ireland
• Paul Murphy, Founder and Lead at Climeaction
• Conor Mulvihill  – Director,  Dairy Industry Ireland

Sustainable Feedstock and Farming

• Dr Paul Crosson, Beef Enterprise Leader and a Principal Research Scientist, Teagasc Grange
• Stephen Robb, Renewables Editor, Irish Farmers Journal
• Mike Magan, Dairy Farmer and Chair of National Fodder and Food Security Committee
• Tadhg Buckley, Director of Policy/Chief Economist Irish Farmers Association
• John McLenaghan,  Deputy  President of the Ulster Farmers Union, and Renewable Energy Operator, County Fermanagh.

Bioeconomy

• Dr Anne Marie Henihan, Centre Director at the Dairy Processing Technology Centre (DPTC)
• Patrick Barrett,  National Bioeconomy Forum
• Dr James McGreer, Chair EBA Biogenic CO₂working group
• Seamus Crickley, WEW Engineering and EBA
• Dr Stephen Nolan,  Green Generation

Transport

• John Pakenham, Director, VisionGreen
• Anna Venturini, Transport specialist, European Biogas Association
• Darren Carty, Director, Sustainable Flight Solutions Ltd