Shannon Gas Pipeline

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Shannon Gas Pipeline is a proposed gas pipeline in Ireland. It is associated with the Shannon LNG Terminal.

Location

The pipeline will run from the southern shore of the Shannon Estuary, County Kerry to the national grid at Foynes, County Limerick, Ireland.

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Project Details

• Operator: Gas Networks Ireland (GNI)
• Parent company: Ervia
• Current capacity: 82.9 million cubic feet per day
• Length: 16.2 mi / 26 km
• Status: Proposed
• Start Year: 2024
• Associated Infrastructure: Shannon LNG Terminal
• ENTSOG Project Code: LNG-A-30

Background

The pipeline will be 26 km (16.2 miles), and export up to 26.8 MCM/d (82.9 mmcf/d) to the national grid at Foynes, County Limerick, with an initial deliverability of 16.1 MCM/d. It is associated with the Shannon LNG Terminal. Both the pipeline and the terminal have been added to the European Commission's fourth Projects of Common Interest (PCI) list, meaning they're eligible for public funding. Planning permission for the pipeline was granted in 2009.

In June 2021, US based New Fortress Energy stated it was ready to apply for planning permission for the Shannon LNG project, reviving the proposal. That same year the European Commission listed the commissioning date for the Terminal and pipeline as December 2024.

The project was subsequently delayed. Progress is largely dependant on the status of the Shannon LNG Terminal, which has been delayed due to planning permission issues and opposition from local environmental groups.

Opposition

The pipeline and associated Shannon LNG terminal is opposed by a number of environmental and community groups. Opponents cite environmental and climate change concerns. The potential for the terminal and pipeline to increase the imports of fracked gas from the United States is a central issue. In February 2019, protestors stage a die-in in protest of the associated Shannon LNG Terminal.

In October of 2018, an environmental group secured permission to bring a High Court challenge over the decision taken by An Bord Pleanála (Ireland's Planning Board) to extend planning permission to develop the Shannon Terminal. Friends of the Irish Environment (FIE) wanted orders quashing a five year extension of permission for development of the terminal, which includes four large tanks, jetties to receive ships, and associated works at Kilcolgan, near Tarbert in north Kerry. Permission for the facility, where gas will be shipped for use by consumers in Ireland and Europe, was granted in 2008. The facility has not yet been constructed and the developer, Shannon LNG Ltd, got an extension of the planning permission on July 13th last.

In its proceeding, FIE claims the Planning Board failed to take account of the possibility of significant effects of the proposed development on local wildlife and flora. It also claims the Board failed to take into account the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015, intended to drive Ireland’s transition to a low carbon state in line with its commitments under the Paris Agreement. FIE wants orders quashing the extension decision and a declaration the Board failed to exclude the possibility that the development would have significant effects on bottlenosed dolphins in the Lower River Shannon Special Area of Conservation. FIE claims the Board erred in law by allegedly failing to take account of up to date and relevant information available to it in the course of its screening for appropriate assessment under the EU Habitats Directive. In February 2019 the High Court ordered the developers of the project not to proceed with construction and referred the case to the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ).

By November of 2019, the associated Shannon LNG Terminal had garnered international attention with American celebrities speaking out in opposition. Pope Francis also came out in support of activists opposing the terminal. It's also been a focus of the climate activist group, Extinction Rebellion. The controversy is in part due to the planned use of fracked gas, which is among the dirtiest natural gas sources. If the project goes through, the fracked gas will be imported from America, despite Ireland having banned fracking within its own borders.

In February 2020, Justice Denis McDonald granted leave to FIE to bring the case, meaning he believes the FIE has proven sufficient cause to bring the suit. Justice McDonald stated that he wants the lawsuit to progress rapidly because inclusion of the ECJ may be necessary. The case centers on the decision-making process that led to the inclusion of the project in the fourth EU Projects of Common Interest (PCI) list, which was approved in February 2020 by the European Parliament. The case is against the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and the Environment, Ireland and the Attorney General. It also claims that the commission failed to meet its obligations under European regulations to conduct sustainability assessments for any of the PCI projects.

In April 2020, a High Court judge refused the State's request to adjourn the late June 2020 hearing until October 2020. The defendants cited the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic, claiming that relevant public officials were working remotely and did not have access to all of the files necessary to provide lawyers with full instructions.

On April 30, 2020, the ECJ found that Shannon LNG will have to make a new application from scratch with an Environmental Impact Assessment to comply with the European Union's Habitats Directive. This requirement is expected to cause significant delays in the project.

In September 2020, the ECJ further ruled that planning permission for the Shannon LNG terminal should not have been extended by the Irish Planning Board without the project being subject to a fresh environmental assessment. The ECJ advised the Irish High Court that a new environmental assessment under the EU Habitats Directive must take place. It will now be for the Irish High Court to decide on the case following this referral to the ECJ to seek clarification of EU law. Campaigners against the terminal believe this latest ECJ ruling puts the project's future into even further doubt following the new Irish government's Programme for Government stance against the project. According to FIE, “the judgment is a welcome development of the European Court’s previous jurisprudence and has far reaching implications for other major projects across Europe which will ensure greater protection for the environment”.

In 2021 the Irish government committed to removing the project from the EU Projects of Common Interest, and issued a policy statement stating: "it would not be appropriate for the development of any LNG terminals in Ireland to be permitted or proceeded with". This was considered by activists at the time to be a moratorium on new LNG infrastructure. The Irish Planning Board subsequently refused planning permission for the project in 2024, finding that the project contravened government policy on LNG and the importation of fracked gas. Shannon LNG successfully challenged this decision in the Irish High Courts. The court found that the government's statement was a policy preference, not a legally binding moratorium, stating that the policy must be accounted for in the planning decision but need not be complied with.

In 2025 the Irish government approved plans by the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment to develop new LNG infrastructure. Weeks later the Irish Planning Board completed a review of a new application from Shannon LNG and granted planning permission for some aspects of the project. Environmental groups responded by bringing further court actions. The court gave permission for Friends of the Irish Environment to bring judicial review proceedings against An Bord Pleanála, the Attorney General and the Minister for Housing.