Bord Gáis opens new €400m power plant in Cork

A new Bord Gáis 445 megawatts gas-fired power plant was officially opened in Cork today.

Whitegate Power Plant is Bord Gáis’s first major electricity generating station.

The €400m investment, construction of which began in March 2008, provides power for 445,000 homes and at the peak of its construction 800 people were employed on site.

The investment was welcomed by Foreign Affairs Minister Micheál Martin, who performed the official opening.

“In these changed and difficult times it is encouraging to see Bord Gáis developing electricity generating infrastructure in Ireland,” Minister Martin said.

Bord Gáis chairman Rose Hynes said the opening was “a significant milestone for both Ireland and Bord Gáis.

“The Whitegate power plant will add significantly to Ireland’s security of energy supply while contributing to cleaner environment,” she said.

Whitegate Power station is a Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) and with an efficiency of 58.5% is the most efficient power station in Ireland. The principal contractors were Gama and General Electric and the project was completed on budget.

After extensive testing the power plant was officially commissioned on November 8 and has been tendering to provide electricity within the Single Electricity Market (SEM) since then.