Ireland Lacks Fossil Fuel Exit Plan Despite Climate Targets and Energy Strategy

Ireland has climate and clean energy targets but lacks a plan to end fossil fuel dependence, which currently accounts for nearly 80 per cent of its energy mix. This is a critical moment to develop such a plan, given recent energy insecurity fears and cost-of-living crises linked to geopolitical reliance on oil and gas.

International momentum for a fossil fuel phase-out is growing. Ireland will cohost a conference on transitioning away from fossil fuels next year and supported a roadmap call at Cop30. As Ireland exports virtually no fossil fuels, it is well-positioned to lead on this issue.

With the government preparing a new national energy strategy, there is an ideal opportunity for an explicit plan for a managed exit from fossil fuels. Current clean energy targets and high-level climate neutrality commitments are insufficient without a coherent strategy for phasing out fossil fuels. The absence of such a plan risks expanding clean technologies while simultaneously locking into fossil fuel dependence, potentially leading to stranded assets and greenwashing.

A comprehensive phase-out plan would prioritize a just transition, ensuring equity and supporting affected workers and communities. It would establish clear, quantitative, and time-bound trajectories for reducing oil, coal, and fossil gas consumption across sectors, with intermediate milestones. While temporary fossil gas use may be necessary during the transition, the plan must explicitly define exit pathways to prevent temporary measures from becoming permanent. The main barriers are now infrastructure, institutional capacity, finance, planning, market structures, public perception, and lobbying, rather than technology or cost. This plan would also necessitate a discussion on the future of Ireland’s gas network, countering proposals like expanded LNG infrastructure or renewed oil and gas exploration that would deepen dependence.