Major wind farm planned for off the coast of Dundalk

Oriel Windfarm Ltd and Gaelectric Holdings Ltd are planning to develop an offshore wind farm in the north Irish Sea that will kick off with a 15MW demonstration project involving an €80m investment.

According to the companies, the North Irish Sea Array (NISA), which is located 22km off the coast from Dundalk, has the potential to produce up to 870MW of wind energy.

They said up to 150 jobs could be created during the construction of the project, followed by 30 long term jobs. The NISA will be the first major offshore renewable energy project to be developed in the Irish Sea since GE Electricity’s construction of the Arklow Bank Wind Farm in 2001.

“This project represents the biggest step forward for the Irish offshore wind energy sector in the last 10 years,” said Brian Britton, managing director of Oriel Windfarm.

“NISA will commence with a significant demonstration project which, by their nature, draw investment and attract collaborations with local universities and provide opportunities for local businesses.

“Demonstration projects in the UK, Germany and Denmark have led to the development of full scale projects, leading to the creation of many thousands of jobs in those countries.”

“Offshore wind speeds, relatively shallow water depth and favourable sea bed conditions, make the Irish Sea an ideal location for offshore wind projects and as a testing ground for offshore wind technologies,” said Brendan McGrath, CEO of Gaelectric Holdings.

“The presence of a number of established ports on the east coast of Ireland is also a factor which will help attract investment to Ireland.  We are confident that the project will attract leading industry players to the offshore Irish market and will be an important step towards realising the vast potential for renewable generation from the Irish Sea.”

Rockmarshall wind farm refused planning permission by An Bord Pleanala

A NEW wind farm proposed for the Cooley Peninsula has had its planning application denied by An Bord Pleanala.

Gaelectric had been looking to build the windfarm within the Rockmarshall forestry plantation north of Jenkinstown and approximately 6km north east of Dundalk.

Their plan was to construct five wind turbines with hub heights not exceeding 80 metres, plus a substation and a meteorological mast.

The hope was that the wind farm would provide electricity for around 7,000 households.

However, a group of local campaigners have always been against the proposed wind farm and have fought the matter vigourously in recent years over fears about its proximity to local houses and the impact it would have on them – pointing out that the devices, which would be larger than the Crowne Plaza Hotel, could impact structures, TV signals and destroy the landscape of the Cooley Mountains.

In April 2012 Louth County Council rejected Gaelectric’s planning application and An Bord Pleanala has now upheld that decision.

Local Green Party councillor Mark Dearey – who lives on the Cooley Peninsula – was quoted a few years back as saying the wind farm was the “right idea in the wrong place” – a quote that became the slogan for the Protect Rockmarshall Mountain group.

The well known billboard protesting against the Rockmarshall Wind Farm, parked near to Fitzpatrick’s Pub and Restaurant in Rockmarshall

Source: Protect Rockmarshall Mountain (Facebook)