University College Dublin students claim €12,000 top prize at EirGrid’s CleanerGrid Competition

Three students from University College Dublin have been announced as winners of the second annual EirGrid CleanerGrid Competition, following an event held in Dublin recently.

With a top prize of €12,000 (€6,000 for the winning student team and €6,000 for the student’s third-level institute), this year’s theme asked students to “Present your vision of what the growing energy sector will need to look like in 2050 to have sustainably achieved net-zero emissions”. 

Team members Ruairí Collins, Eoin Duffy and Stephen Murphy, known as Todhchaí Glas, claimed the top prize for their proposal showing how pumped hydro energy storage could help with managing wind and solar energy variability.

The award was presented to the winners by judges Joanna Donnelly, Meteorologist with Met Éireann, Vish Gain, Technology and Business Journalist with the Business Post, Professor John Barry, Professor of Green Political Economy at Queens University Belfast and EirGrid’s own Head of Engineering and Asset Management, Louise O’Flanagan.

Prizes were also awarded to EcoShift Engineers of University of Galway, who claimed the runner-up prize of €6,000 (€3,000 for the winning student team and €3,000 for the student’s third-level institute), while the third-place prize of €2,000 (€1,000 for the winning student and €1,000 for the student’s third-level institute) was claimed by The Transmission's Transition from Dublin City University.

The CleanerGrid competition run by EirGrid, the operator and developer of Ireland’s electricity grid, aims to foster innovation and creativity by encouraging third-level students to showcase their skills in solving critical energy challenges, with a focus on sustainability, efficiency and clean energy technologies.

Entrants were asked to show how the grid will need to change to allow for more renewable sources and less conventional generation; including what government policies will need to be in place, how the economy will be affected, how the grid will need to adapt, how technology can help achieve this goal, or any other relevant points they identify in order to create a resilient energy system for the future. 

Among the ideas put forward by the five competing teams of finalists from DCU, University of Galway, UCD and Trinity College Dublin included pumped hydro, leveraging our coasts through offshore wind and the use of artificial intelligence in grid enhancement.

Following the awards, the UCD mechanical engineering students spoke positively of their experience, saying, “This project has been a great opportunity to get an insight into the energy sector, and the markets as well. The competition really pushes you to really engage with the energy system, which is something students wouldn’t typically know much about or engage in.

“We wanted our proposal to focus on something that could fit into the Irish grid, making it as realistic as possible. We have learned so much over the course of the competition.”

Congratulating all the teams on an engaging series of presentations, EirGrid’s Chief Innovation Officer, Liam Ryan, said: “Today’s competition is further evidence of the valuable contributions third-level students can offer in tackling societal challenges such as decarbonisation, energy affordability and climate action. They are at the forefront of the latest cutting-edge research through our universities, and we can learn so much from them.

“As we work towards delivering the Government targets for a decarbonised, sustainable, and strong economy, we recognise the importance of bringing students and young people with us on the journey as we transition to a clean, renewable energy grid. We offer our thanks to everyone who took part in today’s final, coming from all corners of the country.”