Demand for gas in January up 17% compared to December

Kenneth Fox

In a cool and sunny month with record breaking gusts due to Storm Éowyn, overall gas demand increased by 17 per cent in January, compared to December, according to Gas Networks Ireland.

Year-on-year, the increase was 5 per cent. January 8th 2025, recorded the highest ever gas demand day for the Republic of Ireland, with January 9th ranking as the third highest.

This was driven by a combination of high gas demand for electricity generation and low temperatures.

2024 was a record year for gas demand in transport. This trend continued into 2025, with January’s transport gas demand surging by 107 per cent year-on-year highlighting growing interest in compressed natural gas (CNG) and its renewable equivalent, BioCNG.

The latter is carbon neutral biomethane gas, compressed to fit into a commercial vehicle’s tank. Ireland’s commercial transport fleet makes up just three per cent of vehicles on the road nationwide yet is responsible for approximately 20 per cent of transport’s carbon emissions. This significant increase represents a real step forward in decarbonising this sector of our economy.

Gas played a critical role in Ireland’s electricity generation in January, contributing 44 per cent to overall electricity generation - up from 38 per cent in December and two percentage points higher than January 2024.

Gas generation peaked at 83 per cent last month and never dropped below 11 per cent4. Despite record breaking gusts, wind energy’s contribution fell from 41 per cent in December to 33 per cent in January 2025 - with a peak contribution of 77 per cent - but at times fell away completely, generating less than one percent.

During Storm Éowyn, which severely impacted some parts of the country on January 24th, gas provided 42 per cent of electricity generation, while wind contributed 36 per cent.

Between January 20th and 22nd last, gas ed for 68 per cent of electricity generation (peaking at 83 percent 2), while wind contributed  5 per cent during this period of high demand, highlighting how critical the flexibility of the gas network is in power generation as we transition to renewable future.

Gas Networks Ireland’s director of strategy and regulation, Edwina Nyhan, said: “January was a good month to demonstrate both the resilience of Ireland’s gas network and the always dependable backup it provides to the country - whether during the cold weather event at the start of the month or during Storm Éowyn.

"As a critical part of Ireland’s energy system, gas and the gas network ensure stability when wind and solar energy levels are low, providing essential backup power to generate electricity.

"Ireland’s gas network is one of the safest and most modern in Europe and with the added security of its 14,725km of underground pipeline, it is highly resilient to adverse weather conditions. Supply to customers was not impacted at any stage due to these weather events.”