Gas Networks Ireland has secured planning permission for a €200 million project to reduce emissions at two compressor stations in south-west Scotland.

Dumfries & Galloway Council approved new electric motor drives at the Beattock and Brighouse Bay sites. The equipment will replace gas turbine-driven compressors and run on renewable electricity.

The stations help transport gas from Scotland to Ireland, compressing it to maintain the pressure needed to send it through subsea interconnectors into the Irish network. Almost 80 per cent of Ireland's natural gas requirements passes through the sites.

The project, first announced in March 2026, is expected to cut Gas Networks Ireland's operational greenhouse gas emissions by 42 per cent, equivalent to 87,000 tonnes of CO2e, while maintaining the infrastructure's resilience and reliability.

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Brian Sheehan, the company's director of assets and infrastructure, said: "We welcome the decision by Dumfries & Galloway Council to grant planning permission for this project.  The Beattock and Brighouse Bay compressor stations play a vital role in Ireland's energy security, enabling the safe and reliable transportation of gas from Scotland to Ireland. Around 80 per cent of the gas we use in Ireland passes through these stations.

"This €200 million investment demonstrates our commitment to decarbonising our own operations, while continuing to provide the safe, secure and reliable gas infrastructure that underpins Ireland's energy security.

"The planning permission is a positive step forward in delivering this infrastructure and we continue to work closely with stakeholders in Ireland and Scotland as the project progresses."

Procurement of the electric motor drives is under way, and the new equipment is expected to be operational in 2030. The scheme is part of the company's wider effort to reduce its operational emissions and support Ireland's transition to a net zero carbon energy system.