Energia Group veteran David Macartney discusses how the island of Ireland’s energy landscape has evolved over the years, along with the key challenges ahead and the need for more women engineers.
Ireland’s energy sector has witnessed extensive transformations over the past couple of decades, a fact that David Macartney is all too familiar with.
He has worked with Energia Group for more than 25 years, on various goals such as energy generation, supply projects and overseeing the development of renewable energy projects in solar and onshore wind.
He is currently Energia’s corporate development director, working to identify and develop new renewable energy opportunities across the island of Ireland.
“I have a role in leading a team of talented engineers to collaborate on tackling today’s pressing challenges, including climate change and energy security,” Macartney said.
But Macartney’s engineering journey began even earlier, as both his grandfather and father were electrical engineers who worked for Northern Ireland Electricity.
“My grandfather played a key role in keeping the lights on during the Second World War and my father developed the automation of the electricity network in Northern Ireland,” Macartney said. “Both were roles that contributed to energy security.
“I hope my career makes a similar positive impact in both Energia Group’s and the island of Ireland’s journey to a net zero economy.”
Macartney has already had to face crisis scenarios in his career, as he played a key role in the In the early 2000s when several major power station outages occurred in Northern Ireland and connection was lost with Scotland.
“I was the engineer responsible for ensuring that energy users didn’t go into darkness, and it was an invaluable lesson on how to manage an emergency with competing priorities,” he said. “I have led the development of one of the first large scale battery storage projects on the island, and that’s another project I’m proud of.”
The changing grid
Speaking to SiliconRepublic.com, Macartney noted that the changes to the energy landscape have been “significant” over the years.
“Coal and oil-fired power stations have all transitioned to gas fired power stations and now the focus is on the responsible management of those assets as we make our transition to a low carbon economy whilst ensuring security of supply,” he said. “The energy market has also evolved considerably with an all-island energy market – the Single Electricity Market (SEM) – introduced in 2007.
“Specifically on green energy, SEM has one of the highest proportions of wind energy on any system in the world. This is a significant achievement both in terms of the investment in renewable electricity and the management of the power system.”
A report from Wind Energy Ireland at the start of the year claimed wind supplied a record 35pc of Irish electricity in 2023 and cut the country’s gas spending by almost €1.3bn.
But wind is only one form of renewable energy, as Macartney said he is working on various projects on behalf of Energia.
“I currently lead the company’s partnership with Artemis Technologies to develop a world leading zero emission hydrofoil ferry in Belfast,” Macartney said. “I have also recently worked on the development of the first green hydrogen production facility on the island at our Long Mountain windfarm and championed the development of a first of its kind battery storage facility in Belfast.”
Challenges ahead
But the path to a greener energy grid isn’t a simple one, as the Wind Energy Ireland report criticised the country’s current planning system for building new wind farms and called for grid reinforcement to accommodate new builds.
Macartney also noted challenges in Ireland’s ambitious Climate Action Plan, which aims to have 80pc of all power coming from renewable sources by 2030. He said one of the biggest challenges is on developing options for “when the wind isn’t blowing, and the sun is not shining”.
“Also forecasting and developing the volume and infrastructure for the shift in primary energy sources for transport, including maritime, road and aerospace,” Macartney said.
“The availability of engineering skills has also become another challenge, as sufficient numbers of experienced power engineers haven’t been developed globally to meet the considerable requirements to transition energy systems”
“Also, the number of females pursuing a career in engineering is still very low, and this hasn’t followed the same trends as medicine, law, and accountancy, for example.”
In 2022, ActionZero energy engineer Siona Daly said attracting more women to work in engineering is “crucial” for the climate action movement in Ireland to be successful.
The future of engineering
Despite the challenges ahead, Macartney remains optimistic about the future and about the advances that will be made in engineering and renewable energy options.
“Very significant progress has been made with wind turbine technology, and I envisage that over the next twenty years, similar paradigm shifts in engineering innovation will occur,” he said. “Energia Group’s work with Artemis Technologies on their zero-emission hydrofoil ferry has demonstrated how the limits of engineering can be advanced on a daily basis.
“I also anticipate that there will be advances in battery chemistry, which will have a positive knock-on effect for utility scale energy storage.”
Macartney said he is passionate about sustainability and that contributing to a greener future is “incredibly rewarding”. He also predicts that there will be “considerable advances in sustainability” in the maritime and aviation sectors.
“However, there will also be some issues with their transformation as both industries are more challenging in terms of the technical solutions required to drive sustainability,” he said. “There will need to be collaboration on a global level to ensure further continuing progress.”
Macartney said he is a firm believer in “finishing work with a smile on your face” and said people perform best when they enjoy what they’re doing – a fact he works to instill into his team. For anyone looking to advance their career, Macartney’s key advice is “don’t follow the crowd”.
“Take calculated risks and follow your passion,” Macartney said. “Find what you’re interested in and build on it. Whether that’s studying a course related to your interest in college or seeking out particular career opportunities.”
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