Keep Ireland LNG Free - No new fossil fuel infrastructure in a Climate Crisis.

In 2019, the Irish Government demonstrated strong leadership as the second country in the world to declare a climate emergency [1], now it’s time they started acting like we’re in one.

As thousands of scientists and communities around the world are saying [2], supporting 

any new major oil and gas infrastructure would lock us into fossil fuel energy for 30-40 years and jeopardise our ability to fulfil our current and future climate action commitments and meet critical global warming limits

Renewable energy is the future and Ireland has taken major steps towards a cleaner, greener future by banning fracking and new offshore drilling licences for fossil fuels.

But right now, ignoring public sentiment and government-commissioned reports [3], the new government plans to move ahead with polluting commercial LNG developments in Ireland [4].

Fossil fuel companies have long been planning to build multiple Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminals, a particularly climate-damaging and polluting fossil fuel on the Irish coast; including in Kerry [5], Cork, Mayo and Louth [6].

These companies will continue to seek ways to sidestep and undermine our national efforts to create a fossil fuel-free future [7] in order to sustain their record-breaking profit margins [8]. We need to stop them once and for all by preventing the development of any new LNG infrastructure in Ireland.  

With data centre electricity consumption at 21% in 2023 [9], it’s clear that this dirty fuel would be used to facilitate further growth of the energy-hungry data centre industry [10]. 

When we take action together, we take leaps towards a healthy planet. Working in solidarity the climate movement achieved a nationwide ban on offshore drilling - let's do it again and Keep Ireland LNG Free!

LNG is fossil gas which has been turned into a liquid to be transported around the world on tankers. At every stage of its production, it leaks methane, making it hugely climate-damaging [11]. On a full life-cycle basis, it is as devastating for the climate as coal or oil, with scientists indicating the emissions footprint of LNG exceeds that of coal by 33 per cent over a 20-year period [12].

LNG is often obtained by fracking, which we banned in Ireland in 2017 because of its appalling environmental and health impacts - including birth defects, respiratory disease and increased cancer rates in local communities [13]. However, if LNG infrastructure is developed in Ireland, we would be unable to control whether the gas arriving in Ireland is fracked or not. LNG terminals could also cause significant health impacts and even pose a risk to life for Irish communities due to air pollution and potential gas leaks and explosions [14].

Increasing our nation’s reliance on LNG fossil fuel energy will further expose us to energy insecurity and price rises, deepening the already severe cost of living crisis. The most secure source of energy for our future is indigenous renewables supported by storage [15], demand reduction and demand management. Renewables are already cheaper than fossil fuels [16] and LNG would threaten investment in renewables by flooding the market with dirty energy [17].

Take action - Keep Ireland LNG Free!

Sign the petition to Taoiseach Micheál Martin asking him to keep Ireland LNG free.

Visit www.lngfree.ie for more information and actions!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[1] Paul Cunningham, ‘Ireland becomes second country to declare climate emergency’ (RTÉ, 10 May 2019)

[2] Fergus Green, Olivier Bois von Kursk,Greg Muttitt, Steve Pye, ‘No new fossil fuel projects: The norm we need’ (2024) 384(6699) Climate Policy 954-957

[3] Caroline O'Doherty, ‘Campaigners say Taoiseach’s plans for gas storage facility are not based on latest analysis’ (Irish Independent, 14 February 2025)

[4] Daniel Murray, ‘Government moves towards commercial LNG facility in departure from Green policy’ (Business Post, 16 Feb 2025)

[5] Alan Healy, ‘High Court overturns An Bord Pleanála's refusal on Shannon LNG terminal’ (Irish Examiner, 30 September 2024)

[6] Not Here Not Anywhere, ‘Stop LNG in Ireland Summary Briefing’ (2021) 

[7] Daniel Murray, ‘Shannon LNG terminal can go ahead if planning is granted, Varadkar says’ (Business Post, 30 January 2022) 

[8] Shaina Sadai, ‘Fossil Fuel Companies Make Billions in Profit as We Suffer Billions in Losses: 2024 Edition’ (The Equation, 17 April 2024) 

[9] Central Statistics Office, ‘Data Centres Metered Electricity Consumption 2023’ 

[10] Radio Kerry News, ‘8 new data centres part of new plans for Shannon LNG’ (23 June 2021) ; Kevin O’Sullivan, Data centre boom under AI growth in Ireland threatening climate targets, report warns’ (The Irish Times, 10 December 2024) 

[11] Kevin Anderson, John Broderick, ‘Natural gas and climate change’ (2017) University of Manchester

[12] Robert W. Howarth, ‘The greenhouse gas footprint of liquefied natural gas (LNG) exported from the United States’ (2024) 12(11) Energy Science & Engineering 4843-4859

[13] Environmental Integrity Project, ‘Troubled Waters for LNG: The COVID-19 Recession and Overproduction Derail Dramatic Expansion of Liquefied Natural Gas’ (2020)

[14] Rainforest Action Network, A Bridge to Nowhere: The Climate, Human Rights, and Financial Risks of Liquefied Natural Gas Export (2016) 

[15] Barry McMullin, Paul Price, James Carton, Kevin Anderson, ‘Is Natural Gas “Essential for Ireland’s Future Energy Security”? A Critical Response to the Irish Academy of Engineering’ (2018) 

[16] Mark Dyson,  Chaz Teplin,  Alex Engel,  Grant Glazer, ‘The Growing Market for Clean Energy Portfolios’ (2019)

[17] Christine Shearer, John Bistline, Mason Inman and Steven J Davis, ‘The effect of natural gas supply on US renewable energy and CO2 emissions’ (2014) 9 Environmental Research Letters