Ireland’s emerging offshore wind sector will need to clear critical hurdles over the next year to ensure momentum into the 2030s, with approval of development sites off the south coast by summer most pressing, Wind Energy Ireland chief executive Noel Cunniffe has said.
In addition, six fixed-turbine wind farms were expected to go into planning phase within the next three months, he said, with lingering concerns about the State’s ability to process applications in a timely way. “We are still worried An Bord Pleanála, the National Parks & Wildlife Service and key environmental stakeholders are not ready for the offshore wind energy planning applications which will be on their desks shortly,” he added.
Tánaiste Micheál Martin underlined the Government’s ambition in seeking to accelerate offshore energy. “We plan to deploy more gigawatts of offshore energy by 2030 than France, Spain or Portugal or Belgium. Only Germany, the Netherlands and Demark plan to deploy more...all of which have larger electricity markets and established offshore wind sectors.”
IDA Ireland head of sustainability Ian O’Hora said the sector was moving towards “a floating solution” with small projects elsewhere. For Ireland, it was eight to 10 years away but “floating is very much ‘a now question’. Fixed allows us turn on the lights sooner”.