Welcome to CleanerGrid
CleanerGrid is EirGrid’s annual competition that challenges third-level students across Ireland to develop innovative solutions that tackle climate change. Participants from any academic background, working individually or in teams, respond to a real-world scenario concerning Ireland’s energy transition, with the chance to win cash prizes for themselves and their colleges.
CleanerGrid 2027
Powering Up the Energy Citizen
This year’s CleanerGrid competition asks third-level students to respond to the prompt: ‘Powering Up the Energy Citizen’. The challenge is framed from the perspective of a Transmission System Operator (TSO): how can a TSO support citizens, communities and new consumer technologies to deliver a secure, reliable, affordable and decarbonised electricity system?
As smart meters, electric vehicles, heat pumps, rooftop solar, battery storage and flexible tariffs become more common, citizens will play a more active role in how and when electricity is used. This creates opportunities for flexibility, renewable integration and public engagement, while also presenting challenges around forecasting, visibility, accessibility and system security.
Your challenge is to propose innovative, practical solutions that address both the opportunities and the obstacles ahead.
Whether working individually, in discipline-specific, or interdisciplinary teams - participants should familiarise themselves with:
- Relevant domestic and EU policies and regulations.
- EirGrid’s existing ongoing and planned projects.
Submissions should build on existing research but focus on fresh innovations and actionable proposals rather than produce literature reviews.
CleanerGrid is open to undergraduate and taught postgraduate students (below PhD level). Sponsorship of the project by a member of academic staff is a requirement and their participation must be indicated when submitting the application.
Key Dates
Applications open: Tuesday 22 September 2026
Application deadline: Friday 6 November 2026 at 23:59
Final submission deadline: Friday 12 February 2027 at 23:59
After an internal review, shortlisted finalists will be invited to present their projects live at the CleanerGrid Finale & Awards Ceremony in EirGrid’s offices at the end of March 2027.
Project Requirements
- A Written Report of 4,000-5,000 words
- A Video Presentation of no more than 15 minutes
Full submission details are available in the Competition Documents below.
- First prize: €6,000 for the individual or team and €6,000 for the 3rd level institute
- Second prize: €3,000 for the individual or team and €3,000 for the 3rd level institute
- Third prize: €1,500 for the individual or team and €1,500 for the 3rd level institute
What’s in it for students?
- Real-World Challenge: Tackle a prompt related to Ireland’s clean energy transition.
- Long Project Timeline: With several months to develop your ideas, you can balance academic commitments while diving deep into energy innovation.
- National Recognition: Finalists present their projects at a live event judged by experts.
- Build Your Network: Engage with professionals, academics, and peers.
- Boost Your CV: Showcase your innovation and presentation skills.
“We started looking at the project back in October, so we had plenty of time to think about the prompt and decide what we wanted to do... I really enjoyed the process, and energy is an industry I would be interested in working in, in the future.”
- Combating Curtailment Team, 1st Place Winners 2025-26
“The competition pushes you to really engage with the energy system - something students maybe wouldn’t otherwise do.”
- Todhchaí Glas Team, 1st Place Winners 2024-25
Competition Documents
2026 Winners
The prompt challenged students to address the opportunities and challenges in accelerating offshore wind potential.
First Place - Combating Curtailment
A data‑driven model that identifies optimal locations and sizes for flexible energy storage to reduce offshore wind dispatch‑down. The team demonstrated how strategically deployed battery storage could significantly cut curtailment while remaining economically viable.
Students:
- Peter McHugh – MEng Energy Systems Engineering, 5th Year
- Rory Tobin – MEng Energy Systems Engineering, 5th Year
Supervisor:
Dr William Smith (UCD)
Award: €6,000 to University College Dublin + €6,000 shared among the team.
Second Place - UCD UAV
An engineering assessment of how subcontracted Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) could support inspection and monitoring of offshore renewable energy assets. Their proposal shows how AUVs can lower O&M costs and enhance offshore infrastructure reliability.
Students:
- Joe Biju – Electrical & Electronic Engineering, 3rd Year
- Lorcan Cranley – Mechanical Engineering, 4th Year (ME)
- Luke Elliot – Mechanical Engineering, 3rd Year
- Jack Friel – Mechanical Engineering, 4th Year (ME)
- Kelvin Gao – Electrical & Electronic Engineering, 2nd Year
- Moaz Refaei – Electrical & Electronic Engineering, 3rd Year
Supervisor:
Dr Kevin Nolan
Award: €3,000 to University College Dublin + €3,000 shared among the team.
Third Place - VI
A proposal for an intelligent turbine outage‑coordination dashboard that integrates asset health data, weather conditions, and vessel logistics to reduce downtime and streamline offshore maintenance planning.
Students:
- Cian Brady – Electronic Engineering, 3rd Year
- Yicheng Chen – Electrical Engineering, 3rd Year
- Jesse Hendry – Electrical Engineering, 3rd Year
- James Sherwood – Mechanical Engineering, 3rd Year
- Cian Spillane – Electrical Engineering, 3rd Year
- Harry Stevens – Electrical Engineering, 3rd Year
Supervisor:
Dr Hamed Heydari‑Doostabad (UCD)
Award: €1,500 to University College Dublin + €1,500 shared among the team.
2025 Winners
The prompt challenged students to present their vision of what the growing energy sector will need to look like in 2050 to have sustainably achieved net-zero emissions.
First Place - Todhchaí Glas
Ruairí Collins, Eoin Duffy, Stephen Murphy, three Mechanical Engineering with Business Master's students from University College Dublin. Their project focused on hydro pumped storage. Supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Paula Carroll.
Award: €6,000 to University College Dublin + €6,000 shared among the team.
Second Place - EcoShift Engineers
Ruchit Ghandi, Sarah Jane Hughes, Ethan O’Brien, three 2nd-year Electronic and Computer Engineering students from University of Galway. Their project focused on a peer-to-peer energy trading app. Supervisor: Prof. Martin Glavin.
Award: €3,000 to University of Galway + €3,000 shared among the team.
Third Place - The Transmission's Transition
Jarlaith Brady, a final-year Mechanical and Sustainability Engineering student from Dublin City University. This project presented a strategic plan for new transmission lines with short-, medium-, and long-term goals. Supervisor: Dr. Greg McNamara.
Award: €1,000 Dublin City University + €1,000 to the student.