Damage to Ireland’s subsea gas interconnectors would have a catastrophic impact on the country’s energy supply, Minister for the Environment Darragh O’Brien has been warned.
The assessment is contained in briefing papers and studies on energy security which have been released under the Freedom of Information Act.
They state that Ireland is highly vulnerable to the impact of gas supply disruptions and notes that a Russian naval vessel loitered over the Gas Networks Ireland subsea interconnector last November.
The documents predict that damage to a subsea gas pipeline would take six months to repair, and 250 big plants and campuses could lose gas supply.
These include sectors such as pharma, food, beverages, dairy, and manufacturing, along with airports and universities.
The findings have led to a call by security analyst Declan Power for greater cooperation between Ireland and Britain to protect the economically essential interconnectors.
The analysis was compiled in advance of the Government agreeing to develop a State-led Floating Storage and Regassification Unit (FSRU).
An FSRU is a large vessel that can store liquified natural gas and distribute it to the national grid.
Green Party leader Roderic O’Gorman urged caution, however, and said the FSRU must not be used to open the door to the commercial use of fracked gas in Ireland.
The legislation to develop the State’s floating gas storage unit will go before the Oireachtas after the Easter recess.
The key study presented to the Government, which was carried out by international consultants CEPA, found that a floating storage unit could mitigate the impact on electricity customers if the IC2 interconnector was out of action.
It contends that in the event of a full outage of subsea interconnectors, the FSRU would significantly reduce the impact but not in its entirety.
The study estimates that an FSRU would also allow Ireland to meet the EU requirement in the next decade to maintain gas supply even if there was a disruption.
However, it noted too that things like electricity interconnection, extremely high levels of electricity storage and offshore wind could also help to meet the EU regulation.
