Mayo Towns to benefit from the extension of the natural gas grid

The 148km Mayo-Galway pipeline, which was completed last month, starts at the Bellanaboy gas processing terminal and continues to Craughwell in Co Galway.  This pipeline was built to connect the Corrib Gas Field to the national gas grid.  The bulk of the funding for the pipeline, which cost €200 million, was provided through an agreement with the Corrib Gas Partners who will pay a tariff on the gas transportation.

Commenting on this development, Mr Andy Pyle, Shell’s Managing Director, said, “We are delighted with this news.  It is clear that this significant development is a direct result of the Corrib Gas project and it is a major tangible benefit that Corrib has delivered to the region.  The new gas connections to Mayo and Galway towns will surely increase the attractiveness of the region as a location for doing business”.

We now need to focus on delivering the Corrib gas project so that further benefits can be realised in Erris and Mayo as well as contribute nationally to the security of energy supply by bringing this natural gas resource ashore”, Mr Pyle concluded. 

It is expected that gas will be available in the first of these towns before the end of 2007 and the remainder during 2008.  Bord Gáis will now develop a detailed construction programme for these network extensions.  Commenting on the new connections, Mr Gerry Walsh, Chief Executive, Bord Gáis, said, “The Mayo-Galway pipeline has provided the opportunity for these eleven towns to be connected.  We will now continue with Phase 2 of the New Towns Analysis and will be evaluating the viability of extending the gas network to towns in other parts of Ireland that have previously proved uneconomic”.