A new offshore wind project has been announced for Clare.
Mainstream Renewable Power, one of the world’s leading renewable energy companies, is currently developing a site 20km from the coast – further offshore than the majority of projects currently being explored.
If successful with the development, Mainstream will be establishing a 15-year community benefit fund for the local community and will work closely with local stakeholders ahead of designing a scheme that ensures that the community benefits in the most effective way.
Commenting on Mainstream’s plans, Leo Varadkar, Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise Trade and Employment, said “Ireland has huge potential for offshore wind generation. Our coasts give us a natural advantage and I see us becoming a net exporter of electricity and energy over the next couple of decades, giving us greater energy security and price stability. It will also create thousands of jobs in communities, especially coastal communities, across the country. It’s a great vote of confidence in that vision that has Mainstream Renewable Power deciding to invest further here. I visited the company’s offices in Chile and Colombia earlier this year and saw first-hand the incredible work the team does on a global scale. I’m excited to see what the team achieves here.”
Commenting on its Clare project, Mary Quaney, Group Chief Executive, Mainstream Renewable Power said, “The waters off Clare provide some of the best conditions for wind energy across Europe with natural wind resources that have the potential to power all of Clare’s electrical output with clean and locally-sourced power. We are hugely excited at the prospect of bringing our team to Clare and contributing as positively to the local community as we have in the many other communities that we’ve become a part of across the world.”
Mainstream will in the near future be inviting local groups and members of the public to take part in the first in a series of public consultation engagements. This will include webinars and information clinics.
