Government was 'taken a bit by surprise' regarding energy shortage warning — Taoiseach and Tánaiste

The Irish government was 'taken a bit by surprise' regarding a recent energy shortage warning from the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) last week.

That's according to An Taoiseach Michéal Martin and An Tánaiste Leo Varadkar, after the CRU told the govt that electricity suppliers to find ways to curb the surge in demand for power that occurs between 5pm and 7pm daily.

It follows after a detailed plan was announced to reduce peak electricity demand, bring additional power generation sources on stream and manage the expansion of the energy-dependent digital economy, including data centres.

The Irish Independent reported that the Taoiseach admitted that, late last year at some stage, 'there would have been indications from the CRU that there were challenges in respect of energy.'

He added: "(The) govt was taken a bit by surprise in respect of that presentation and so (the) govt directed the powers to procure, on an emergency basis, capacity to generate energy."

The Tánaiste also said that while Ireland managed to get through the last winter without any major problems, he did say that there have been a number of amber alerts recently.

"We do plan to bring additional generation over the course of the winter and also plan to encourage homeowners and big energy users, particularly industry, to use less energy at peak times and more energy at other times," Mr Varadkar said.

The latest risk register for the CRU, which was published last month, scored challenges to supply at five out of five for impact, and four out of five for the likelihood of them happening.

This in turn created a risk calculated at 20 out of 25 that electricity supply needs for Ireland would not be met between now and 2025.

Findings from the register noted that there is 'potential to hamper public sentiment for Climate Action Plan and the transition to [a] low carbon future.'