Latest news with #PaulDeane
Irish Independent
24-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Move by Iran to close key trading route for oil could send petrol and diesel prices soaring here
Iran's parliament has endorsed a measure to close the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global transit chokepoint, in response to US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites, Iranian state media reported on Sunday. UCC energy expert Dr Paul Deane said even a temporary closure of the vital trade route would send pump prices up. 'Iran has the capability to close the Strait of Hormuz through military action,' he said. 'If this were to happen, even temporarily, it would have a major impact on global oil markets, causing prices to rise both in Ireland and around the world.' Brent crude oil prices rose in the wake of the US bombing of nuclear facilities in Iran, and was trading at around $77 (€67) yesterday, having hit €81 over the weekend. Motorists here have already seen the cost of diesel and petrol rise at the pumps over the past few weeks, after a few months of falling prices. Home-heating oil prices have shot up in recent days, with the cost of 1,000 litres of the fuel now approaching €1,000, according to comparison site Dr Deane said a key factor in where fuel prices would go was what would happen to the Strait of Hormuz and whether the United States would become further involved in the conflict, he wrote on the RTÉ website. The Strait of Hormuz, located in southern Iran, is a narrow corridor of water about 160km long. It serves as the main transit route from the Gulf for around 25pc of the world's oil supply, including exports from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Iraq and Iran. It is considered the world's most important oil gateway. Dr Deane said other important oil transit routes can be circumvented, but there was no meaningful alternative to the Strait of Hormuz for large-scale oil shipments. ADVERTISEMENT He said even a limited escalation in the conflict would 'cause a sharp spike in prices'. But it is unlikely to persist for a long period because the broader global oil landscape is relatively robust. Supply of crude oil is outstripping demand globally, with the move to electric vehicles a factor. Meanwhile, the fuel industry here has defended the surge in prices at the pumps in recent days even though prices were slow to fall earlier in the year when crude prices fell sharply. Kevin McPartlan, of Fuels for Ireland, which represents the major petrol retailers, denied his members were 'ripping off the public' by quickly increasing prices, and failing to drop them when crude had fallen earlier this year. He said profit margins were thin on the sale of petrol and diesel, and what he described as dynamic pricing meant wholesale prices were reflected quickly in what would be charged by retailers. Prices charged by forecourt operators tracked the wholesale price when the ship containing the refined petrol and diesel leaves port, with most fuel coming to Ireland from Wales.
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Massive new centers consume unbelievable share of country's electricity, sparking concerns: 'It's kind of an outrageous number'
Generative AI, like the famous ChatGPT, takes a massive amount of computing power to run. That means a lot of energy being drawn from the grid wherever the data center is located. Many of these data centers are located in Ireland — and they're taking an unbelievable share of the country's electricity, AP News reported. Data centers for major tech companies — including Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, and TikTok — are found in Dublin and across the country of Ireland. They consume more power than all of the urban homes in the country combined, a full 21% of the country's electricity in 2023. Out of the countries that have reported their energy burdens for computing to the International Energy Agency, Ireland's burden is the highest. This power has to come from somewhere, and officials are worried the demand could outpace the supply. Ireland is a "microcosm of what many countries could be facing over the next decade, particularly with the growth of AI," energy researcher Paul Deane from the University College Cork told AP News. The high demand for energy is having an impact on residents. "It's kind of an outrageous number of data centers," said Dublin activist Darragh Adelaide, per AP News. "People have started to make the connection between the amount of electricity they're using and electricity prices going up." And higher bills aren't the only price Ireland is paying. Much of its energy supply comes from dirty fuel sources like oil and coal. Burning these fuels pollutes the air, which is unhealthy for residents and can lead to premature deaths. Ireland's Environmental Protection Agency has cited nitrogen oxide pollution from data centers' gas or diesel turbines as a particular concern in Dublin. Dirty energy also releases heat-trapping gases into the atmosphere, contributing to the overheating of the planet. Do you think you're overpaying for electricity? Yes No Only in certain months I'm not sure Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Dublin is so vulnerable to rolling blackouts at this point that the grid operator has banned new data centers in the area until at least 2028, per AP News. The government has also encouraged new data centers to choose sites away from the city and find ways to generate their own power. Ireland is also hard at work on supplying more clean energy from wind farms and other sources. Meanwhile, scientists are looking for ways to reduce the power needed by AI data centers. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
