Capital market beckons for green energy company

A WATERFORD company bidding to promote greener energy is edging into the lucrative Dublin market.

Businesses in the greater Wicklow and south Co Dublin area who want a cleaner, greener and more efficient heating source now have a swift, regular supply of woodchips right on their doorstep.

Former dairy farmer John Webb has just opened a Natural Power Supply (NPS) woodchip depot at Cooldross Farm in Kilcoole, Co Wicklow. NPS has its headquarters at Ballymountain, Ferrybank, Waterford, and just recently opened a similar depot near Fermoy in Cork.

From his extensive farm base located just off the M50, Mr Webb will chip wood and distribute the fuel which will power the NPS boilers in businesses or large, one-off houses across Wicklow and South Dublin.

“When NPS approached me about this business venture, I jumped at the opportunity,” Mr Webb said. “I think everyone is conscious now about the need to ‘go green’ and switch away from fossil fuels which are getting scarce and expensive and are damaging to our environment,” he added.

Mr Webb has been dairy farming since he left school more than 25 years ago. As he has sold his 80-strong dairy herd to focus his full attention on developing the NPS depot.

“NPS has a policy of minimising the impact on the environment by only delivering within a 30-mile radius of each depot. My base here will allow NPS to reach Dublin City and the greater Dublin Area. My farm is within striking distance of the M50 and from there, I can go anywhere.”

NPS is already eyeing up business opportunities in the Wicklow/south Dublin area. Among the eco-friendly projects it hopes to benefit from are the €100 million Kilternan Hotel project currently under construction and the many commercial, industrial and domestic projects underway and planned for the sprawling commuter region.

The Wicklow depot is a huge boost in NPS’s growing network of depots, according to Tim Carroll, project engineer with the Waterford-based company.

“We now have seven established depots and plan to bring more on stream,” said Mr Carroll. “The Wicklow depot is our closest to such a major hub as Dublin, a region which has massive potential for us. NPS is growing all the time as more businesses and householders switch to more eco-friendly and energy-efficient heating sources such as woodchip and wood pellets.”

NPS’s growing number of depots provide woodchip and wood pellet fuel close to source and helps farmers plant and manage willow plantations across the country.

MD and shareholder James Kennedy said: “The new Wicklow depot is a key part of our national roll-out of depots close to Dublin. We already have a depot near Portlaoise and will soon have another in North Dublin. Our new Mountmellick depot will target West Dublin.”