Preparing for a New Era of Extreme Weather: Why Energy Resilience Matters More Than Ever

Storm season is back, and with it a growing concern among households and businesses about what the coming months will bring. The recent warnings from the Climate Change Advisory Council underscore a worrying reality: Ireland is still not fully prepared for the intensifying pattern of extreme weather events.

Storm Éowyn, which battered the country in January, exposed serious vulnerabilities in how we manage and recover from such events. Record-breaking winds left more than 768,000 premises without power and 200,000 without water. Researchers from the University of Galway later confirmed how narrowly the west coast avoided catastrophic flooding, a matter of timing and luck rather than preparedness. As Met Éireann issues warnings for the first named storm of the season, Storm Amy, it’s clear that this challenge is far from over. The storms are becoming more frequent, more powerful, and more costly. While conversations about storm response often focus on flood defences and emergency plans, one critical factor remains overlooked: energy resilience. When extreme weather hits, energy networks are often the first to fail, leaving businesses unable to operate, critical services disrupted, and entire communities vulnerable.

At Watt Footprint, we’ve seen firsthand how businesses can mitigate these risks. Through smarter energy management, monitoring, and planning, organisations can build systems that are not only more efficient but also more resilient to disruption. Our Energy Management Platform gives businesses real-time visibility into their energy use, allowing them to detect inefficiencies, respond faster to outages, and plan for continuity during extreme weather. By understanding when, where, and how energy is used, businesses can strengthen their resilience against future shocks.

As Ireland and the wider UK and UAE markets face the growing effects of climate change, it’s no longer enough to focus solely on sustainability targets. We must also design for adaptation, ensuring that our energy systems, infrastructure, and operations can withstand what’s ahead. For Watt Footprint, sustainability has always meant more than reducing carbon. It’s about enabling businesses to operate with confidence, even as the climate becomes more unpredictable. Extreme weather is becoming the new normal, but with the right data, technology, and collaboration, we can make sure businesses are ready, not just to recover from storms, but to keep performing through them.