CycleØ opens new Irish branch to further expand biomethane platform

As an integrated owner and operator of biomethane projects, CycleØ will begin rolling out its small-scale, modular plants to meet the growing demand and distributed nature of Ireland's agricultural/food waste feedstock.

LONDON and DUBLIN, Feb. 6, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- CycleØ, whose technologies capture, process and upgrade naturally occurring methane gas produced principally by the agri-food and livestock industries, today announced the opening of a new branch in Ireland. The Company has appointed James Manley as Country Manager of Ireland and will begin making significant investments across the country to support the Irish government's objective to exponentially increase the country's biomethane production from its current nascent levels.

"I'm very excited to announce the opening of our Irish branch, headed up by James who has more than 20 years of comprehensive experience operating across the agricultural sector," said CycleØ CEO, Laurence Molke. "We're on a mission to reduce GHG emissions now and help meet the revised RePowerEU target of producing 35 bcm of biomethane by 2030. Investing in Ireland's new biomethane sector is another step towards reaching those goals."

To date, Ireland's green gas industry has developed slowly due to a lack of government regulatory and financial support, as well as challenges with accessing waste feedstock from its dispersed agricultural/food sectors. As of 2021, there were just a handful of biomethane plants operating in Ireland, —compared to 365 in France and 238 in Germany. 

However, the country's 180 million metric tonnes of annual agricultural waste are a feedstock resource readily available to be used for renewable natural gas production. 

CycleØ is a portfolio company of Ara Partners, a private equity firm that specializes in industrial decarbonization investments. Alongside Ara, whose European headquarters are in in Dublin, CycleØ will invest and contribute towards the development of Irelands' growing renewable natural gas sector. Additionally, CycleØ's manufacturing and technical subsidiary, FNX, supplies biomethane upgrading and liquefaction technology for small and medium-sized applications which are an ideal fit with the Irish market.

"Accessing that stranded feedstock requires a special approach that we can bring to the table," Molke explained. "Our technical solutions, our ability to build plants economically and our engineering experience are what will let us unlock Ireland's biomethane value chain."

CycleØ builds, owns and operates small-to-medium-scale biomethane plants designed to be easily shipped and assembled on-site, making them ideal for deployment at remote locations to access feedstock that would otherwise be stranded.

"Our plants are skid-mounted and factory-tested by our experienced production and technical teams at FNX in Artea, the Basque country in northern Spain," Molke said. "This makes them easy to transport and minimises erection and commissioning delays. We have decades-long experience building greenfield projects and ample capital to play an active role in helping the biomethane market to take off in Ireland."

As of 2021, there were 1,067 biomethane plants in Europe. Just two of those are in Ireland. In 2022, the Irish government set the stage for growth, aiming to cover 10% of the gas needs with green gas by 2030. To meet this target, local production will need to reach 5.7TWh. The country produced just 25 GWh of biomethane between May 2020 and August 2022.

And while the country doesn't yet have a direct incentive program for the production of biomethane, Molke says that conversations with the country's gas grid operator, Gas Networks Ireland, shows a firm commitment to the development of biomethane in the country.

Gas Networks Ireland, the operator of Ireland's national gas network, is working to replace natural gas with renewable gases, such as biomethane and hydrogen, while complementing intermittent renewable electricity and supporting Ireland's journey to a cleaner energy future.

Gas Networks Ireland's Growth Development Manager, David Hanahoe said:

"CycleØ's expansion into Ireland is another recognition of the country's potential to both produce biomethane and create an industry around it.

An Irish indigenous biomethane industry would not only support the decarbonisation of the agricultural sector, but it would also provide significant opportunities for rural communities and facilitate sustainable circular economies."

We are looking forward to working with CycleØ to establish network entry connections, and to increase the amount of biomethane that can be transported to almost 720,000 homes and businesses across the country."

Mr Molke said he's looking forward to collaborating with Gas Networks Ireland to develop deeper connections in the country and, to help build an end-to-end biomethane ecosystem that will power the country's renewable energy transition.

About CycleØ
Methane gas is a super-pollutant that's warming the climate 80 times faster than carbon dioxide. At CycleØ, we build, own and operate plants that turn these harmful emissions into sustainable, renewable biomethane that's helping the world reach net-zero emissions. We're an end-to-end biomethane provider delivering innovative solutions that are slowing the pace of global warming - today.

About Gas Networks Ireland
Gas Networks Ireland operates and maintains Ireland's €2.7bn, 14,664km national gas network, which is considered one of the safest and most modern renewables-ready gas networks in the world.

Almost 720,000 Irish homes and businesses trust Ireland's gas network to provide efficient and reliable energy to meet their heating, cooking, manufacturing and transport needs.

The gas network is the cornerstone of Ireland's energy system, securely supplying more than 30% of Ireland's total energy, including 40% of all heating and almost 50% of the country's electricity generation.

By working to replace natural gas with renewable gases, such as biomethane and hydrogen, and complementing intermittent renewable electricity, Gas Networks Ireland is supporting Ireland's journey to a cleaner energy future.
www.gasnetworks.ie 

Contact:
Andrea De Asco, Senior Marketing Manager
CycleØ
andrea.deasco@cycle0.com 
+44 7874 162897
www.cycleØ.com 

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