CycleØ Group, which last year announced its intention to make a €100m investment in new innovative agri-based biomethane plants in Ireland, will equity-finance, build and operate a total of 4 new plants, with the 2 remaining sites initially identified at sites in Cavan and Galway.

This is a crucial investment to support the decarbonisation of the Irish gas network, recently referred to as the “north star” by David Kelly, director of customer and business development at Gas Networks Ireland.

GNI is focused on replacing natural gas with renewable natural gas such as the biomethane that will be produced at the 4 new CycleØ plants, which will over time help to replace the natural gas currently being used in the gas network.

The plants are expected to generate around 40GWh each of biomethane per annum, enough in total to heat over 12,000 homes for a year in Ireland. The plants will bring sustainable, renewable energy to support decarbonisation and provide a solution to the challenge of waste management while bringing new green jobs to rural communities.

Speaking about the progress, James Manley, Ireland Country manager for CycleØ explained the importance that the company places on community engagement. The company held a public engagement event in Limerick in December, with a similar event now planned about the Ballyvass site in Co Kildare on 19 February at Clanard Court Hotel in Athy, to enable the communities closest to the planned plants to learn more about them and to ask questions. “We’re holding an event for each location, which we’ll advertise in the Irish Farmers Journal, local press, on our Facebook page and on our website.

“We are grateful for the engagement we’ve seen to date from the community of the Limerick plant, both at our public event in December and the questions that we’ve received since. There is more information about the plants and our plans available on our website”.

CycleØ is looking to contract with local farmers as feedstock suppliers, offering a solution to slurry storage and management. This is just one way in which these plants will generate long-term additional revenue for farmers and their communities, while helping to decarbonise the Irish gas network.

The key benefits of AD plants are:

  • Contracting to provide stock for the plants provides farmers with a solution to the long-term management of slurry, manure and agri-waste. That means peace of mind for farmers concerned by the nitrate derogation limiting their ability to manage manure within existing land resources.
  • The selling of feedstock waste for processing at the plants will generate additional revenue with long-term contracts of up to 15-years available as standard.

  • Farmers may sign agreements with CycleØ to sell or lease land for plant construction and to sell their by-products for processing into biomethane, with the right to purchase the nutrient-rich fertiliser produced by the AD process known as digestate, at low cost.
  • The building of each plant will generate new green jobs during both the construction and operational stages of the plants, helping to support rural communities with well-paid and sustainable employment.

    • To learn more about CycleØ, visit www.cycle0.com