CRU National Energy Demand Strategy

You can read the strategy here.

The National Energy Demand Strategy (NEDS) is now complete and includes an implementation plan with a list of recommendations and time-bound actions.

• Core objectives are to ensure overall electricity and gas demand is consistent with Ireland’s carbon sectoral emissions ceilings (SECs) and to deliver demand flexibility as outlined in the Climate Action Plan.
• The CRU and other contributing organisations will now focus on implementing the strategy and delivering on actions to provide increased demand flexibility.
• An update to the NEDS is anticipated in 2026/2027. This will take the form of a review of progress against NEDS actions and assessment of progress towards demand flexibility targets into consideration, also focussing on longer-term actions. 

We have published the National Energy Demand Strategy which sets out the next steps for the implementation of actions to address the forecasted growth in Ireland’s energy demand in the next decade.

The actions outlined in the NEDS demonstrate the CRU’s commitment to facilitating a more reliable, sustainable, and efficient energy system, while also minimising costs for energy customers.

The NEDS outlines actions which will enable all customer groups to bring greater flexibility to their energy consumption. This will contribute to increased decarbonisation, enhanced security of supply, and lower system costs by incentivising greater flexibility and decarbonisation of electricity usage by all customer groups in Ireland’s growing economy. It will also support the delivery of Ireland’s transition to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

This strategy outlines a co-ordinated approach across relevant public bodies and relevant entities working to increase demand flexibility and requires that actions be taken across a broad spectrum of sectors including energy, enterprise, environmental, spatial and planning policy and regulatory policy. To support these actions, further work and decisions are required across Government departments, local authorities, enterprise development agencies and other public bodies.

The design of the NEDS is now complete, and sets out three focus areas to deliver on the objectives:

• Smart Services – to encourage greater flexibility in how domestic and smaller business customers use energy.
• Demand Flexibility and Response – to increase the potential for demand response from users, including large energy users (LEUs) and storage, at times when it is beneficial for the system and for energy users.
• New Demand Connections – to provide a pathway for new LEU connections to the electricity and gas systems. This will focus on the ability for these customers to provide flexibility on the system, while also seeking to support the transition to decarbonisation. This recognises the important role LEUs can play in this regard.

As part of the NEDS, the CRU continues to review the responses to the Large Energy Users Connection Policy consultation and is targeting publication of the next stage of consultation at the end of Summer 2024, reflecting information and feedback received.

The NEDS will now move into the implementation phase (2024 – 2026) which will focus on incentivising the uptake and diversity of flexibility for all energy consumers through appropriate policies, market and standards, as well as enabling products and technologies, such as the recent CRU decision to approve the request by ESBN to procure up to 500MW of medium-term flexibility products.

Governance and oversight of the NEDS will be provided by a NEDS Implementation Group, chaired by the CRU and with representatives from the key organisations carrying out the actions.

Ireland’s energy demand is forecast to continue to grow significantly in the next decade. The recommendations and actions in the NEDS demonstrate the commitment of the CRU, as well as Government and non-Government stakeholders', to facilitating a more reliable, sustainable, and efficient energy system, while also minimising costs for energy customers.

Commenting on the strategy, CRU Director of Decarbonisation, Phil Hemmingway said: “Ireland’s first National Energy Demand Strategy sets out a range of actions and recommendations intended to deliver decarbonisation, security of supply and cost benefits. It will be a critical enabler of future electricity demand growth and continued build out of renewable energy generation. Delivery of the actions and recommendations within the strategy will contribute significantly towards Ireland remaining within its carbon budgets, delivering significant energy system demand flexibility, and supporting the social and economic transformation required to reach Ireland’s net zero emissions goal by 2050”.