Ireland

International Hydrogen Policies

Country: Ireland

Document type: National Strategy

Released: July 2023

Summary Points:

Ireland would prioritise the scale up and production of renewable hydrogen.
Prior to 2030, hydrogen would be produced from grid connected electrolysis from surplus renewables.
A 2 GW target of offshore wind, for the production of renewable hydrogen, to be in development by 2030.
The deployment of renewable hydrogen would focus on hard-to-decarbonise sectors where energy efficiency and direct electrification are not feasible or cost-effective solutions.
Heavy duty transport applications are anticipated to be the first end use sectors to develop, followed closely by industry and flexible power generation.
Aviation and maritime are expected to be large high priority end-users in the longer term.
Indicative projections estimate that Ireland’s domestic hydrogen energy demand needs could equate to between 4.6 and 39 TWh by 2050; when including non-domestic energy needs such as International Aviation and Shipping, these values could rise to between 19.8 to 74.6 TWh.
In view of the wide range of potential outcomes, the strategy highlights that future work is needed to better understand the needs of potential end-use sectors, the volumes of renewable hydrogen required within these sectors and the role that renewable hydrogen can play in an integrated net zero energy.
Initial hydrogen applications are likely to utilise compressed tankering solutions. As production expands, hydrogen pipelines are envisioned to become the dominant transportation option.
Hydrogen infrastructure is expected to roll out initially across several regional clusters where production, high priority demand users and large-scale storage are co-located. The expansion and linking of these clusters into a national hydrogen network is seen as key to creating a mature hydrogen market.
Where feasible, repurposing existing natural gas pipeline infrastructure to hydrogen is favourably viewed.
Commercial ports will play an important role in facilitating the establishment of a hydrogen economy.
Ireland would look to adopt the EU Hydrogen and Decarbonised Gas Package which sets out the regulatory market rules for scaling up hydrogen and the development of dedicated hydrogen infrastructures.
Renewable and low carbon hydrogen would be defined in line with EU regulations, and development of a certification scheme should reflect these definitions.

The strategy includes a strategic hydrogen development timeline roadmap for how the hydrogen industry can develop and scale up by 2050 and presents a guide as to when different components of the hydrogen sector are anticipated to be needed by as the sector ramps up during the country’s transition to net zero.

Information on hydrogen industry developments can be found on the Hydrogen Ireland website.

Uploaded: January 2024