Business In Ireland 2025 - Emissions and Energy Use by Enterprises

As significant consumers of energy, especially in sectors like Transport and Industry (including Construction), enterprises contribute heavily to greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution through fossil fuel-intensive energy use. By reducing energy consumption and improving energy efficiency enterprises can lower their environmental impact.

In addition to the environmental benefits, energy efficiency can also result in cost savings, helping enterprises reduce operational expenses while contributing to long-term sustainability.

In this chapter we will see that:

• The overall energy use by Irish resident enterprises increased by 2% between 2018 and 2023, primarily driven by demand from the Transportation & Storage sector.
• The Electricity, Gas & Steam sector accounted for 22% of total energy use in 2023, down from 32% in 2014. Energy use in the Electricity, Gas & Steam sector fell by 20% in 2023 compared with 2022, with solid fuel use in the sector down 45% between 2022 and 2023.
• The Manufacturing sector accounted for 17% of total energy use in 2023 following a fall in energy use in the sector of 10% between 2018 and 2023.
• Energy consumption from aviation fuel, which is used almost entirely in the Transportation & Storage sector, was up 26% since 2018, however most of the emissions related to the use of aviation fuel are not counted towards Ireland’s official greenhouse gas emissions (see background notes for more details).
• Aviation fuel, natural gas and electricity were the main energy products used by enterprises in 2023, accounting for 40%, 29% and 14% of energy use respectively.
• Large energy users, a category including major data centres and significant industrial consumers, represented 31% of total metered electricity consumed (both non-residential and residential customers) in 2024, up from 15% in 2015.
• Building standards have changed over time, with newer non-domestic buildings now generally more energy efficient than the older stock - with “A” energy ratings awarded to 45% of non-domestic buildings constructed between 2020 and 2025.

Energy used by Irish resident enterprises fell by 1.9% in 2023

Data on energy consumption is reported in the CSO, Business Energy Use releases.

The overall quantity of energy used by Irish resident enterprises, in kilotonnes of oil equivalent (ktoe), fell by 1.9% in 2023 compared with 2022. In 2023, energy consumption by enterprises was 1.6% higher than in 2018, primarily driven by demand from the Transportation & Storage sector.

Across the Industry (including Construction) and Services sectors, in 2023:

• The Transportation & Storage sector accounted for 43.2% (6,033 ktoe) of energy consumed.
• The Electricity, Gas & Steam sector was the next highest with 21.9% of total energy use in 2023, down from 32.4% in 2014. Energy use in the Electricity, Gas & Steam sector fell by 19.8% in 2023, compared with 2022.
• Manufacturing accounted for the third most energy use by sector, using 17.0% of energy consumed by enterprises.
• The Information & Communication sector accounted for 4.7% of energy use.
• The largest percentage increase in energy use between 2022 and 2023 was in the Construction sector (+30.6%), but it still accounted for just 1.9% of the overall energy use by enterprises.

See Figure 3.1 and Table 3.1.

Energy consumption from aviation fuel was 96.9% higher in 2023, compared to 2014

Data on energy consumption is reported in the CSO, Business Energy Use releases.

Aviation fuel, natural gas and electricity were the main energy products used by enterprises in 2023, accounting for 39.9%, 29.2% and 14.1% of energy use, respectively.

Energy consumption from aviation fuel, which is used almost entirely in the Transportation & Storage sector, was 9.1% higher in 2023 compared with 2022, and up 96.9% since 2014. This increase from 2014 to 2023 was likely impacted by a rise of 48% in passenger numbers handled at Irish airports over the same period, up from 26.5 million passengers in 2014 to 39.2 million in 2023. The increase in aviation fuel consumption may also be impacted by the activity of Irish airlines abroad.

Most of the emissions related to the use of aviation fuel are not counted towards Ireland’s greenhouse gas emissions when applying the territorial principle, which records emissions produced on the territory of Ireland and is used to determine whether Ireland has met its legally binding emissions targets.

Emissions from international aviation are not included in Ireland’s official greenhouse gas emissions figures as they do not occur within Ireland’s borders (See Background Notes for more details).

In the Electricity, Gas & Steam sector the main energy products used were natural gas and solid fuels:

• Natural gas accounted for 79% of the energy products used in the sector in 2023, up from 52% in 2014.
• Solid fuel use in the sector fell by 45% in 2023 and now represents 13% of energy used by the sector, down from 44% in 2014.
• Renewable energy accounts for 6% of energy used by the sector, up from 2% in 2014.

See Figure 3.2, Figure 3.3, Table 3.2, Table 3.3 and Table 3.4.

Large energy users increased their electricity consumption by 9% between 2023 and 2024

Data on large energy users is reported in the CSO, Metered Electricity Consumption releases.

Total metered electricity consumption for all customers (including both non-residential and residential customers) was 31,903 GWh (gigawatt hours) in 2024, an increase of 4.3% compared with 2023.

Large energy users, a category including major data centres and significant industrial consumers, increased their consumption by 9% between 2023 and 2024. This group represented 31.0% of total metered electricity consumed in 2024, up from 29.8% in the previous year, and up from 14.8% in 2015. See Figure 3.4 and Table 3.5.

In 2024, data centres accounted for 21.8% of metered electricity consumption, up from 5.0% in 2015.

Metered electricity consumption by data centres increased by 10.0% in 2024, up from 6,335 gigawatt hours (GWh) in 2023 to 6,969 GWh in 2024. Consumption by all other users, including residential and other business customers, increased by 2.8% over the same period. See Figure 3.5 and Table 3.6.

Natural gas consumption rose by 2% in 2024

Data on the use of natural gas is reported in the CSO, Natural Gas Consumption releases.

Natural gas consumption rose by 2% in 2024 compared with 2023. Gas consumption rose in all sectors: power plants (2%), non-residential (3%), and residential (3%).

In 2024, 65% of networked gas consumption was from power plants, 24% was from non-residential meters, and 11% was from residential meters. See Figure 3.6 and Table 3.7.

Newer builds were more energy efficient than the older stock

Data on electricity use is reported in the CSO, Non-Domestic Building Energy Ratings releases.

A building energy rating (BER) is an indication of the energy performance of a building, based on the characteristics of major components of the building. For the years 2009-2025, 4% of assessed non-domestic buildings received an “A” rating, 15% a “B” rating, and 32% a “C” rating.

Building standards have changed over time, with newer non-domestic buildings now generally more energy efficient than the older stock - with “A” energy ratings awarded to 45% of non-domestic buildings constructed between 2020 and 2025. See Figure 3.7.

For all non-domestic buildings assessed between 2009 and 2025, schools & colleges were the most energy efficient non-domestic building type audited, with 51% receiving an “A” rating. The second most energy efficient building type were nursing residential homes & hostels, with 17% rated “A”. The highest proportion of “G” ratings were in workshops/maintenance depots (23%).

Most industrial process buildings assessed received a “B” (30%) or “C” (27%) rating, with just 3% receiving an “A” rating. Similarly, two-thirds of hotels received a “B” (29%) or “C” (38%) rating, with 5% receiving an “A” rating. See Table 3.8.

Wholesale energy prices for energy products in December 2025 were 66% below their peak of August 2022

Data on the cost of energy is reported in the CSO, Wholesale Price Index releases.

The wholesale price (excl VAT) for energy products showed significant fluctuations between August 2021 and January 2023.

In December 2025, prices were 66% below their peak of August 2022, but still 39% above January 2021 levels. See Figure 3.8.