The Ireland government has issued payments worth almost €19m to seven projects under the biomethane capital grant scheme – and confirmed €200m will support a second round of capital grants for anaerobic digestion plants through to 2030.
Grants funded through REPowerEU and NextGenerationEU can cover the construction of new biomethane plants and upgrades to existing biogas plants. A fifth of total capital investment costs per applicant will be payable to projects, subject to a maximum €5m.
The successful applicants are listed below.
©Ireland government
Martin Heydon, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, said the grant funding is being drawn down through the EU’s recovery and resilience facility.
“Since the publication of the biomethane strategy, [the Ireland] government has recognised that capital support was needed to kick-start the industry,” he said.
“From an agricultural perspective there are clear benefits to developing the biomethane sector in Ireland in terms of contributing to the delivery of renewable energy targets. Biomethane also represents a pathway for farmers to diversify income streams.”
Darragh O’Brien, Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment, said the first capital grant payments marked an important milestone in the delivery of Ireland’s national biomethane strategy. Ireland is targeting up to 5.7 terawatt-hours of indigenously produced biomethane annually.
“Biomethane will play a vital role in the decarbonisation of Ireland’s built environment, industrial activities, and transport sector,” he said.
“Looking ahead, I am pleased to confirm that a further €200m, secured through the National Development Plan process, will support a second round of capital grants for anaerobic digestion plants. This funding programme is expected to open later in 2026 and will continue through to 2030.”
The funding will help de-risk construction, create steady profits and enable Ireland to hit green targets.
A large-scale is moving ahead despite the European Commission blocking a key support mechanism in the country’s Renewable Heat Obligation (RHO) scheme in April. The EU objected to a 1.5-times ‘multiplier’ credit system, claiming it favoured Irish-made biomethane and penalised imported renewable gases.
Last month Ireland’s Commission for Regulation of Utilities updated its biomethane policy to for injection into the grid.
Funding follows IFA calls for more certainty
The Irish Farming Association (IFA) has called on the government to advance support for farm-scale biomethane production and provide long-term certainty to farmers.
Following Biomethane Day Ireland in Dublin last month, IFA Energy from Farm Farms Project Team Chair Maurice Brady said farmers have been waiting too long for meaningful progress, despite the huge potential for biogas and biomethane to reduce emissions and provide new income streams.
“Farmers are ready to invest, but they need certainty that proposed projects can progress and that they will be commercially viable,” he said.
The progression of the RHO and a commitment to open a capital grant scheme provides a silver lining, however clear timelines or additional support are needed if farmer-scale production is to become a reality, according to Brady.
“Ireland has set ambitious biomethane/biogas targets, but unless projects are bankable, they will not be achieved,” he added. “Government must now provide the long-term certainty needed for farmers, developers and lenders to invest with confidence.”
The IFA calls for the proposed biomethane capital grant programme to include a 50% capital grant for farm scale biogas plants in line with the IFA energy from farms policy paper.
The new capital grant scheme must also provide funding for farm-scale biogas plants which use the biogas produced on the farm to produce heat and power through a combined heat and power plant, it added.
The IFA also urged the government to move quickly when it comes to the capital grant programme and legislative process for the RHO and called for farmers to be recognised through policy and supports for their potential to produce renewable energy on their farms.
“Ireland has the farmers, the feedstock, the grid and the expertise to build a successful indigenous sector. The opportunity is there … government must now match its ambition with decisive action,” said Brady.
