Summary

To tackle climate change, we must transition to net-zero, and we must do it quickly. Recognising the complexity of the challenge, the ESIPP research programme (which ran from 2016 to 2021 and is now succeeded by the NexSys programme) brought together a broad mix of researchers, along with industry partners and collaborators, to study Ireland’s energy system as a whole and work out how to decarbonise it. Their findings were wide-ranging, from identifying how to facilitate a greater share of wind energy on the grid, to uncovering the factors that affect consumer uptake of green technologies.

ESIPP’s research has been used extensively by industry and Government. For example, it supported ESB’s decision to invest €50 million in a pioneering new technology, and it informed Government targets in the Climate Action Plan. The ESIPP programme saw more than 100 students and postdocs trained in power systems engineering, an increasingly scarce but highly valuable skillset.

The team have shared their expertise extensively across the mainstream media, helping the public to understand the scale of the climate crisis, and how we can work together for a sustainable future.

Research description

The climate crisis is one of society’s most urgent challenges, and the transition to a net-zero energy system is essential. To achieve this, we need to develop alternative energy sources to replace fossil fuels, ensuring our energy infrastructure, our economies and our communities can accommodate higher shares of renewables.

Helping decarbonise Ireland’s energy system was the core mission of the Energy Systems Integration Partnership Programme (ESIPP). But the system is far from simple, with complex interdependencies between electricity, gas, data, transport, water and other infrastructures. Uniquely, ESIPP, the flagship programme of UCD’s Energy Institute, sought to study the system as a whole, developing a first-of-its-kind suite of integrated mathematical models to better understand how the energy system works, and how it can be decarbonised.

This required experts from a wide range of fields – mathematics, economics, finance, consumer behaviour, and engineering in its many forms – to work together in an integrated way, alongside industry partners, policymakers and communities. Led by Professor Andrew Keane, ESIPP brought together a broad mix of researchers from five different institutions.

Through this multidisciplinary research, ESIPP answered many key questions about how we can decarbonise energy in Ireland (and how we can do it in a fair way that doesn’t cause or exacerbate inequalities). To give just a few examples:

• Associate Professor Damian Flynn identified and evaluated the various technologies needed to facilitate a greater share of wind and solar energy on the grid.
• Dr Eoin Syron established how much green hydrogen can be blended into the gas network, and how this can be managed to ensure steady supply.
• Professor Lisa Ryan’s team identified different factors that affect consumer uptake of new technologies, like electric vehicles and solar panels (see the EMPowER case study for detail).
• Associate Professor James O’Donnell’s team implemented a new decision-making tool that maps building energy performance and renovation opportunities over multiple geographical scales.
• Associate Professor Geertje Schuitema worked with local communities, workers and unions in the midlands to understand the social impact of closing two peat-fired power plants.

ESIPP’s work continues with the Next Generation Energy Systems (NexSys) research programme, also hosted by UCD’s Energy Institute, in partnership with ESRI, DCU, QUB, NUI Galway, Maynooth University, TCD, UCC, and Ulster University. The energy sectors of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland are integrated, so it’s important that the research is as well. The all-island approach taken by ESIPP and NexSys represents one of the most extensive North-South academic collaborations to date.

Research impact

Academic and technological impact

Ireland has unique characteristics that make it an ideal location for world-leading activity in sustainable energy systems. The Irish grid has low levels of interconnectivity with the power systems in GB and continental EU, which presents greater challenges for integrating renewables, due to the small system size. However, more than one third of our energy comes from wind, one of the highest shares in the world. That the grid can harness this power is, in part, due to the close and ongoing partnership between the energy sector and UCD’s Energy Institute.

Over five short years, ESIPP delivered on its research objectives, leading international developments in sustainable energy. Research by ESIPP/NexSys, in partnership with industry and Government, is playing a crucial role in allowing Ireland to capitalise on its location, improving energy security and contributing evidence to meet our carbon targets for the electricity sector by 2030.

This is exactly the research that is going to make a tangible difference in terms of meeting our climate objectives.

— Simon Harris TD, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science

Economic impact

By developing a unique modelling framework that has never been seen before in the energy industry, the ESIPP programme supported decision-making by EirGrid, ESB and other industry bodies.

ESIPP research highlighted the challenges facing grid operations with rising shares of renewables. This directly informed ESB’s decision to invest almost €50 million in a pioneering technology known as a synchronous compensator, which enables higher volumes of renewables on the grid. Research by ESIPP members was crucial in de-risking this investment, showing the benefits it would have on grid operation and its value for supporting system stability and security.

Similarly, research on the Future Gas Network has highlighted the role that hydrogen can play in helping decarbonise the energy system. Building on this, Gas Networks Ireland, in collaboration with UCD, have developed the Hydrogen Innovation Centre in Brownsbarn, Dublin. Here, end-use devices commonly found on the Irish gas network (boilers, hobs and ovens) have been tested with natural gas and blends of hydrogen up to 20%.

Impacts like these are not accidental. Much of ESIPP’s research was informed by data provided by industry, as well as their insights into future challenges, meaning the research findings met specific needs and could be acted upon quickly.

In addition, EirGrid and ESB have hosted multiple researchers on work placements, exchanging knowledge and ideas. During these placements, ESIPP researchers contributed to critical projects of national importance, such as network upgrades and grid stability assessments for renewable energy.

Several researchers involved in ESIPP deployed new technologies through spin-out companies. NovoGrid (co-founded by Professor Keane) is currently working to accelerate the integration of solar and wind energy in the UK’s grid. A new “biofilm” technology developed by OxyMem (co-founded by Professor Eoin Casey and Dr Eoin Syron) purifies and treats wastewater, saving 75% energy compared to other methods.

Many of these fruitful collaborations extend and continue with NexSys’ work.

We have gained huge insights from our involvement with UCD Energy Institute on the many challenges of moving to a de-carbonised energy system.

— Marguerite Sayers, Deputy CEO, ESB

Educational impact

Power systems engineering is an increasingly rare skillset globally, linked to an ageing workforce, but it is highly valued. Building capacity in this area was a key aim of ESIPP. 69 Masters graduates, 32 PhD graduates and 35 postdoctoral researchers were trained to apply a “whole system” approach to the challenges of decarbonisation. ESIPP was a source of highly sought-after talent for Ireland’s energy sector, with 43% of trainees moving to industry to help us transition to net-zero. NexSys has similar ambitions: an important part of the programme's vision is to develop the technologies and talent needed for the energy transition by 2027.

Political impact

ESIPP academics have directly shaped national and international energy policy. The EMPowER project, co-led by Professors Lisa Ryan and Damian Flynn, helped policymakers assess the potential impact of different energy policy scenarios, informing Government targets and strategies. Professors Ryan and Flynn also co-chaired a working group to develop the electricity chapter in the Climate Action Plan 2021, and are doing so again for the 2023 update. See the EMPowER case study for detail.

Research by Dr James O'Donnell, which analysed the energy efficiency of Ireland’s housing stock, was used by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland to determine priority locations for housing retrofits.

The team’s policy influence culminated in their leadership of the Dublin Climate Dialogues in May 2021, hosting prominent figures from industry, Government and academia (including John Kerry, Mary Robinson and Fatih Birol). Recommendations from the event were formally presented to the COP26 Presidency, directly informing the COP26 discussion in Glasgow.

ESIPP team members are also active participants in the European Energy Research Alliance, helping develop the technical and economic frameworks that governments and industries need to build an efficient and sustainable European energy system. ESIPP/NexSys is represented on these groups by Professors Damian Flynn and Andrew Keane.

UCD Energy Institute’s commitment to translating their findings for policymakers can be seen in their Insights Series, a collection of nine topical papers targeted at a diverse audience.

Social impact

Members of ESIPP have become trusted voices in the community for impartial energy expertise, having shared their findings via hundreds of media engagements in print, online, radio and TV (see References below for examples).

Through these efforts, ESIPP researchers have raised awareness of the climate crisis, discussing the feasibility of different measures to meet the Government’s emissions targets. By contextualising the issue, Professor Keane and colleagues have helped thousands of listeners and readers to understand the scale of the problem and how we can work together to create a sustainable future.

In light of rising energy prices, this public engagement has become doubly important. We’re all trying to limit how much energy we consume, but it’s hard to know which steps are most effective. Media appearances by colleagues in ESIPP, like Professors Ryan and Keane, have helped people understand the cost implications of different measures, such as driving 10 km/h slower and using appliances outside of peak hours.

The ESIPP programme also assesses the impact of policies on communities. Research led by Associate Professor Geerte Schuitema’s group on the impact of closing peat-fired power plants in one of the country’s poorest regions resulted in a new framework of Just Transition best practice.

Environmental impact

Through ESIPP and NexSys, more than 125 academic and staff have dedicated countless hours to overcoming the hurdles that stand between us and a net-zero energy system. In the long-term, their actions will help to preserve the environment for future generations, protecting ecosystems, reducing pollution, minimising adverse weather events, and mitigating harm from climate change.