Two of Ireland’s leading public utilities, Uisce Éireann and ESB, have announced a new partnership that will see closer co-operation and collaboration in the development of solutions to help deliver critical national infrastructure in a more sustainable manner.

Photo: ESB Generation & Trading spokesperson Edward McGuire

and Uisce Eireann Innovation Technical Lead Aisling Buckley

Central to the new agreement will be the development, in line with the principles of the circular economy, of innovative solutions to help achieve the State’s target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050. One of the areas in which the two organisations plan to collaborate is in relation to the delivery of the national hydrogen strategy.

This strategy aims to encourage the development of renewable hydrogen, as a long-duration source of renewable energy. This is a core element of both ESB’s and the Government of Ireland’s vision of a resilient, more affordable, and decarbonised electricity system.

Renewable hydrogen production from electrolysis at scale requires significant volumes of water resources. One solution being explored is the reuse of treated wastewater from municipal wastewater treatment plants. This initiative, called HyWater, has already received approval from the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU), with a feasibility study currently underway and projected for completion by Autumn 2025.

The study aims to determine the project's viability and cost-effectiveness. Additionally, it will propose a trial location for a small-scale hydrogen production facility. The collaboration has the potential to pursue large-scale implementation of the solution for hydrogen production should the trial prove to be successful.

Welcoming the new partnership, Uisce Eireann Innovation Technical Lead Aisling Buckley said:

“Uisce Éireann, as Ireland’s national public water services provider, supplies 1.7 billion litres of drinking water to its customers every day and collects and treats more than 1.3 billion litres of wastewater before it is safely returned to the environment. Providing safe, secure and sustainable water services is vital to enable communities across Ireland to thrive, by protecting public health, enabling economic development and enhancing our environment and precious water resources.

“With the supply of sustainable water services being core to our business but recognising the need to offer support in developing and improving Irish infrastructure in line with government strategy, we are excited to be taking a collaborative approach with ESB that will deliver a significant national benefit. The project will also pave the way for further wastewater re-use, energy neutrality and circularity targets of the Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive (UWWTD).”

ESB Generation and Trading spokesperson Edward McGuire commented:

“We are delighted to announce this partnership with Uisce Éireann. Both organisations have committed to achieving net zero emissions and have recognised a need to take urgent and focused action to achieve this outcome whilst putting in place the infrastructure and services to enable the wider delivery of Ireland’s net zero target by 2050. We know that to reach this goal, even more sources of clean energy will be required to support the electricity system here in Ireland. At ESB, we believe green hydrogen will be one of those sources and we are excited to see what can be delivered though this collaboration.”

ESB and Uisce Éireann have committed to work together to develop innovative and sustainable solutions which can deliver national outcomes without impacting the resilience of water supplies and treatment of wastewater.

In doing so, the companies will come together to review and facilitate opportunities for more active engagement with the circular economy, working with local and global experts and enterprises to develop knowledge of the water and energy nexus in Ireland and expand learning across both organisations.