Gas demand in the first half of the year closed substantially up across virtually all sectors of the Irish economy compared to the same period last year, with demand in homes seeing a 6% increase.
Demand from transport (+118%), construction (+25%), manufacturing (+19%), hospitals (+13%) and pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturing (+8%) were all up year-on-year.
Gas also remained the main provider of Ireland’s electricity generation through the first six months of 2021, supplying 46% of the country’s total electricity demand and more than 71% at its peak.
Wind provided 32% and coal and peat collectively provided 10% of power generation.
Gas demand for power generation
With a number of gas-fired power plants offline for planned and unplanned maintenance, demand for power generation was down 6% compared to the same period last year and this led to overall demand being down 4% year-to-date compared to 2020.
According to Gas Networks Ireland, as expected, demand for the second quarter was down on the first quarter of the year as normal seasonal demand patterns took hold and heating demand dropped.
Overall demand rose sharply in June 2021, up 16% compared to May.
The demand for gas for electricity generation rose by 17% in the same period, with gas providing 53% of the country’s total electricity for the month, and up to 71% at its peak.
Wind provided 25% and coal and peat collectively provided 11%.
While demand remained steady across most industries, gas usage in laundry (+66%) saw a sharp increase, following the reopening of the hotel and accommodation sector.
Temperature dependent sectors
Conversely, temperature dependent sectors such as schools (-61%), hospitals (-36%) and domestic heating (-16%) all saw substantial reductions in demand month on month, as thermostats were turned down for the summer months.
This reduction is normal for this time of year, according to Gas Networks Ireland, and despite the reductions, demand from these temperature-sensitive sectors was substantially higher than in the same month last year, with residential demand up 23% on the same month last year.
The final gas from the decommissioned Kinsale Area Gas Fields also entered the national network in June after 43 years of service.
Gas Networks Ireland’s head of regulatory affairs, Brian Mullins, said: “Demand in the first six months of 2021 shows the continuing importance of the gas network in delivering reliable energy for homes and businesses across Ireland.
“As our economy began to progressively emerge from Covid-19 restrictions, we saw the demand for gas recover and rise across key sectors.
“Even in the face of outages at a number of gas-fired power plants, gas continues to provide an important foundation for electricity generation and back-up to renewable energy when required.”
Earlier this week, data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) showed that farmers are among the cohorts living in the least energy-efficient dwellings in Ireland.
In 2016, some 11% of farmers, 10% of persons aged 75 years or over, 8% of persons living alone and 8% of persons with a mobility difficulty lived in G-rated dwellings