Gas Networks Ireland to provide guarantees of origin for renewable gases
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Image: Gas Networks Ireland
Gas Networks Ireland has been appointed as the body responsible for issuing guarantees of origin for renewable gases in accordance with the European Union (Renewable Energy) Regulations 2022, which have just been passed into Irish law.
National gas network operators will issue guarantees of origin under a supervisory framework to be set up by the Utilities Regulatory Commission, meaning renewable gas producers will be issued a guarantee of origin for every megawatt hour of renewable gas injected on the National Gas Network of Ireland.
Renewable gas certificates are administered by registries in several European countries to meet the need to track ownership of the environmental value of gas mixtures – both conventional and renewable sources – injected into their national gas networks.
Gas Networks Ireland began issuing renewable energy certificates on a voluntary basis in 2020, pending appointment as the competent authority for renewable gas guarantees of origin for Ireland. Ireland’s Renewable Gas Register complies with the requirements of the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive (RED) II. The Guarantee of Origin Certificate is defined under the European RED II regulations and discloses the origin of the renewable gas to the end user through a ledger and claims system.
RED II contains sustainability and greenhouse gas reduction criteria applicable to specific end users and market sectors. Where these criteria are applied, compliance must be independently verified according to specific schemes approved by the European Commission.
The proof of origin certificate verifies the mass balancing of renewable gas through the network, from injection to withdrawal. Proof of origin will have proof of sustainability documentation inextricably linked to it. Certification at producer level includes ensuring compliance with sustainability criteria and performing a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).
Currently, the sustainability of biomethane produced in Ireland can be verified by one of three voluntary EU schemes – International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC), RedCert or BetterBiomas. These three schemes have been approved by the European Commission to verify compliance of biomethane production with sustainability and greenhouse gas criteria in RED/RED II.
Gas Networks Ireland’s director of customer and business development, David Kelly, said the register is a key feature in the development of Ireland’s renewable gas industry:
“Each certificate represents Gas Networks Ireland’s assurance that the equivalent amount of renewable gas has been injected into the gas network,” Kelly said. By providing an objective means of tracking commercial renewable gas transactions through the supply chain, Ireland’s Renewable Gas Register will help establish market trust and confidence in the renewable gas sector, supporting production expansion, providing certainty for customers and ensuring an incentive for gas producers to inject renewable gas into the grid.”
Carbon-neutral biomethane produced from agricultural and food waste began seamlessly replacing natural gas in Ireland in small quantities in 2019 via the country’s first renewable gas injection point in Cush, Co Kildare, and Gas Networks Ireland is currently preparing to build a second injection facility in Mitchelstown, Co Cork. Gas Networks Ireland is also working to understand the full potential of hydrogen, which can be produced from renewable electricity, in Ireland and ensure that the gas network is able to safely transport and store both blended and 100% hydrogen into the future in its new network Innovation Center in Citywest, Co Dublin.
Kelly said there has been significant growth in demand from companies looking to source sustainable and local fuel alternatives: “Many large energy users are looking to source renewable gas because they recognize the importance of reducing their carbon footprint and switching to a more sustainable future for their company and customers.”
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