Biomethane connects farmers to a cleaner energy future

Things are changing down on the farm. Earlier this year IO Agri, a Cavan business that develops sustainable solutions for livestock farmers, won the innovation award at the National Enterprise Awards.

The company has developed a ventilation system that enables the agriculture sector to capture and reuse greenhouse gas emissions from the likes of cattle sheds and poultry units.

Where previously such gases simply wafted out into the air, polluting it, farmers can now ensure it is converted instead into a valuable feedstock for renewable energy production.

IO Agri won the award for AgDAC, which stands for Agricultural Direct Air Capture, a patented technology it developed in-house.

It’s a good example of the circular economy in action, taking what was a waste product out of the food supply chain and turning it into a valuable feedstock for biogas.

The company participated in BnM’s Accelerate Green Programme in 2024, which supports SMEs and startups that are leading the response to climate action and sustainability.

Today IO Agri’s ventilation system allows farmers to capture emissions at source, whether from livestock housing or slurry management systems, before they can enter the atmosphere and do damage.

‘There are so many new supply chains that have to be developed for this new biomethane production, and that’s where we fit in’

—  Sandra Thompson, IO Agri

These captured emissions constitute a high-quality feedstock for use in anaerobic digestion (AD), the process by which biogas is produced from the decomposition of organic material by micro-organisms in large, oxygen-free tanks.

Biogas typically comprises 60 per cent methane and 40 per cent CO2. It can be used on site for heat purposes or for combined heat and power production, but also be upgraded and turned into biomethane, a valuable and sustainable way to replace fossil-based gas.

Once upgraded to biomethane, it can be injected directly into the country’s gas network as a carbon-neutral renewable gas.

It means livestock emissions are quickly becoming a valuable link in the country’s growing biomethane supply chain, opening up a whole new revenue stream for farmers who produce pigs, poultry, dairy or beef.

It’s why IO Agri’s new AgDAC technology couldn’t have come at a better time, as Ireland moves to catch up with other farming nations in the development of its biomethane infrastructure.

Biomethane only began flowing into the gas network here in 2019 through an injection point in Cush, Co Kildare. The State’s aim is to have 5.7 terawatt hours (TWh) of biomethane production by 2030, equivalent to about 10 per cent of the country’s current gas demand.

[ State fund targets biogas developmentOpens in new window ]

An important milestone was reached in August when Bia Energy’s €90 million renewable biomethane gas facility in Huntstown, Co Dublin, was connected directly to the national gas network.

It marked the first time that a biomethane production plant had been directly connected to the network, enabling the renewable biomethane gas produced on-site to be directly injected for use by businesses and industry across Ireland.

Along with Bia Energy, Gas Networks Ireland also has connection agreements with six other biomethane producers.

This supports the State’s climate targets and also helps to reduce emissions across key sectors of the economy that are traditionally difficult to decarbonise, such as transport, agriculture, industry, and power generation, while also supporting the decarbonisation of the agri-food sector.

As such, the development of the biomethane supply chain has the potential to make a significant economic contribution to rural communities.

The national biomethane strategy makes clear that, as a country with a large agricultural sector, Ireland is among countries with the greatest potential for biomethane production in Europe.

It’s why the national biomethane strategy is so farm-centric, having a key objective of enabling farmers to contribute to the decarbonisation of Ireland’s energy system.

That will help turn farmers from being, by the nature of their work, key polluters, to becoming instead key stakeholders in the development of a valuable carbon-neutral energy source.

Indeed, the national strategy envisages that most of the developments in the sector will take place in rural Ireland, a view backed up by a Sustainable Energy Authority Ireland report. It shows that, between construction and operation of new AD plants, in a best-case scenario, biomethane production here could result in the creation of 2,700 new jobs in the rural economy.

“There are so many new supply chains that have to be developed for this new biomethane production, and that’s where we fit in,” says Sandra Thompson, co-founder of IO Agri.

“And as well as capturing nitrous oxide and ammonia, our direct air capture systems capture valuable trace elements too, such as cobalt, nickel and selenium,” she adds.

“So, when a farmer introduces AgDAC into their shed, they’re getting new revenue from the sale of byproducts. That’s a whole new income stream for the rural community.”