Wind farm a further boost for generation of green energy

IRELAND'S leading independent supplier of green energy, Eirtricity, has commenced construction of its new 35 million euro wind farm at Kingsmountain in Co Sligo.

Kingsmountain will comprise ten Nordex N80/2.5MW turbines and, when fully operational in early 2003, will generate electricity to power the equivalent of 25,000 homes.

Eirtricity chief executive Dr Eddie O'Connor said the construction of the latest facility reaffirms the company's dedication to the continued development of wind energy in Ireland: "The beginning of construction at Kingsmountain is a significant development for Eirtricity. We had originally planned to complete this project during 2001, but delays in securing a grid connection from the ESB National Grid held up construction until now. With a project of this scale underway, Eirtricity is in an even stronger position to ensure the supply of green energy to all of our customers."

It is a condition of the green electricity supply licence granted to Eirtricity by the Commission for Energy Regulation that supply and demand of green power are balanced over a period of time. Dr O'Connor stated yesterday that because of a number of factors including difficulties in gaining access to the national grid and a delay in importing green power from Scotland, Eirtricity had faced a shortfall in the volume of green electricity available during Winter 2001. This had resulted in the company operating outside the limits set down by the CER.

"We are obliged to remedy this short-term situation by over-supplying green power this year. The importing of green electricity from Scotland via the recently activated Moyle Interconnector, as well as energy generated by our own wind farms in Ireland, ensures we're in a position to address last year's shortfall, while continuing to supply our growing customer base", said Dr O'Connor.