Eirgrid urged to liaise with landowners over power line

The IFA has warned Eirgrid’s plans for a €500m power line connecting Cork, Kildare and Wexford will cause significant disturbance for many landowners and stressed the company must engage fully with people along the route to avoid protests.

IFA national environment and rural affairs chairman Harold Kingston said it was essential Eirgrid learnt from protests it had recently encountered with people living in the path of other planned overhead power lines in Co Offaly and Co Laois.

Mr Kingston said the IFA will meet with Eirgrid shortly to emphasise the importance of extensive consultation. “Particular attention must be paid to the concerns of farmers at route selection stage and all options in the planning phase must be considered,” he said.

Eirgrid chief executive Dermot Byrne said the firm needs to build a new 440kv power line connecting Dunstown, Co Kildare with Great Island, Co Wexford and Knockraha, Co Cork in order “to strengthen the electricity grid across the south and east of the country to empower economic growth and enable Ireland to meet its renewable energy targets”.

The line, capable of supplying 750,000 homes, will be fed in part by wind turbine power.

Mr Byrne said no exact route corridor had yet been identified, but it was likely definitive plans would be submitted to An Bord Pleanála in 2015.

“It will take between eight and 10 years to complete and will create hundreds of jobs during construction,” he said.

He said it was envisaged the vast majority of the line would be carried on overhead pylons, but added it was possible in some areas that it may be necessary to run the cables underground.

“The project will help Ireland shift from a heavy reliance on fossil fuels to more sustainable sources of energy. It will facilitate the integration of wind energy into the grid.”

Pat Rabbitte, minister for energy and natural resources said businesses needed a secure, reliable and safe electricity supply into the future and the project would be critical in attracting inward investment to the east and south.

He maintained that the country would achieve its target of using 40% of renewable energy by 2020.

This will be done by utilising more wave and wind energy.

Mr Rabbitte said Eirgrid’s project would lead to more competitive electricity pricing in the future.

Sean Murphy, Chambers Ireland, said the initiative would ensure the south and east were well positioned to deal with future growth in energy demand in the medium-term. “A robust and future-proofed energy infrastructure is a vital prerequisite for new industries that may be attracted to locate in the region.”

Eirgrid said it will engage in extensive public consultation in the coming months.

Open days

Public consultation days (1pm-8pm at all venues):

* Wednesday, May 2: Midleton Park Hotel, Co Cork.

* Tuesday, May 8: The Granville Hotel, Waterford.

* Thursday May 10: Killashee House Hotel, Naas, Co Kildare.

* Friday May 11: Clonmel Park Conference Centre, Clonmel, Co Tipperary.

* Tuesday May 15: Kilkenny Ormonde Hotel, Kilkenny.

* Tuesday May 22: Druids Glen Hotel, Co Wicklow.

* Wednesday May 23: Talbot Hotel, Wexford.