Solar power delivers record 173 Mwh during sunny May

There are 400 solar farms in development around Ireland, with 151 in Cork.

Solar power reached its highest recorded figure on the national electricity grid in May, as Ireland recorded its warmest and sunniest spring in history.

Provisional data from the national grid operator EirGrid shows 173,163 MWh of electricity was produced from grid-scale solar in May, representing 6.5% of electricity generated for the month. In comparison, May 2023 saw 2.7% of all electricity come from solar power, accounting for 71,731 MWh of electricity.

There were also a number of new peaks for grid-scale solar activity for a one-minute period, reaching 755 MW at one point on May 17, beating the record of 752 MW set two days earlier.

Overall, electricity system demand was 2.7 GWh for May, similar to last year. Of the 32.5% of electricity generated from renewables last month, the majority came from wind, which accounted for 22.5%, while 6.5% came from solar, and the remainder of renewable generation came from other sources, including hydro and biomass.

Gas generation accounted for 39% of the electricity produced, with 22.8% being imported via interconnection and 4.6% coming from coal.

Eirgrid said Ireland's grid can currently accommodate up to 75% of electricity from renewable sources at any one time.

“While onshore wind remains the prominent renewable source of electricity in Ireland, solar power has become a notable feature of the Irish power system over the last two years in particular, and we may see further records being reached over the coming summer months," Diarmaid Gillespie, Director of System Operations at EirGrid said.

We also continue to see electricity imports contributing significantly to our fuel mix in meeting electricity demand.

Met Éireann this week reported that spring 2025 was Ireland’s warmest and sunniest in 126 years of recorded data.

Most weather stations recorded the highest total hours of sunshine for the season, making it the sunniest spring ever recorded, according to the national meteorological service.

The season’s highest temperature was observed in Athenry, Co Galway, on a Wednesday in May, when the mercury hit 25.9C — the highest spring temperature in 15 years of local records.