Ireland

Cornwall Insight calculates that Ireland’s battery storage capacity will reach 13.5 GWh by 2030, up from 2.7 GWh in 2025.

The UK electricity regulator has approved five new undersea energy links to connect the United Kingdom with the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Ireland, and between Northern Ireland and Scotland by 2032. Three will serve as traditional interconnectors, while two will also transmit power from offshore wind farms.

New data from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) says there is no scenario in which Ireland will meet its 2030 solar deployment capacity of 8 GW. With existing measures in place, the reality would be more like 5 GW, the government-run group estimates.

Ireland’s overall solar program for schools will see up to 24 MW of installed renewable energy on schools, with associated savings of around €5.5 million ($5.9 million) per year across 4,000 schools nationwide.

A trio of companies owned by DCC Group are teaming up on a support scheme to provide Irish businesses with capital to install rooftop and ground-mounted solar panels on their premises. The scheme aims to support 100 companies to install a total of 50 MW of solar over the next five years.

The Ballinknockane solar farm, awarded to Neoen through the RESS 2 tender in 2022, will be connected to the high-voltage grid in County Limerick and will benefit from a contract for difference mechanism valid until 2040. Neoen announced construction of the plant with the signing of two turnkey EPC contracts with Vinci brand Omexom for the solar facility and TLI Group for the site’s 110 kV substation.

Following Ireland’s most recent renewables auction finalized in late September, the average final price for PV was €0.10476 ($0.12)/kWh, which just a 4% decrease compared to 2023’s auction. pv magazine has spoken with the government, the local PV association and several market operators to understand the reasons behind final high prices.

French independent power producer (IPP) Neoen is increasing its investment in Irish solar with its Ballinknockane project in Ireland, which is now under construction. The company already operates three solar farms in the country totaling 58 MW and recently secured two new projects totaling 170 MW in the latest Irish energy auctions.

An international group of scientists has designed a patented mooring tech and a vertical PV system that reportedly allows the bifacial solar panels to align with the prevailing wind direction to shed wind loads. Depending on a project’s latitude, the system can deliver different power yield.

In what could be Europe’s first, FuturEnergy Ireland has proposed a project that could store energy for up to 100 hours and be operational for 30 years.