Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 27 April 2023
108. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications when the geothermal study conducted at Carlinn Hall, Dundalk, County Louth, in 2022 will be completed; what the plan is when the study results are known; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19762/23]
View answerDistrict heating schemes are large-scale systems that are supplied by one or several centralised or decentralised heat sources and serve multiple buildings and multiple customers. Group, or communal, heating schemes are smaller-scale systems that typically supply single buildings or complexes.
A central part of the journey from dependence on natural gas for heat lies with the implementation of cost-effective energy efficiency measures and the accelerated deployment of renewable energy sources, including consideration of geothermal energy where appropriate.
The techno-economic feasibility study of moving the Carlinn Hall group heating scheme to a renewable energy source such as geothermal energy required additional analysis to be undertaken, and the finalisation of the report is now anticipated to be available in the coming weeks.
The report will contain recommendations on improving the efficiency of the group heating scheme, and an analysis of the most optimal alternative energy source for the scheme. It is envisaged that the insights provided by this study may be of interest to other companies that also operate group heating schemes. However, in this instance, the scheme in question is in private ownership and management, and implementation of the recommendations would be a matter for the relevant parties to consider.
