Where we get our energy: How wind farms can help us weather global energy price hikes

"The more we produce our own renewable energy, the more protected Irish consumers are from very high prices for imported fossil fuels,” says Wind Energy Ireland CEO Noel Cunniffe.

Ireland's first and only operational offshore wind farm off the coast of Arklow, Co. Wicklow, where SSE Renewables is proposing to invest between €1bn and €2bn to increase its capacity to power almost 450,000 homes annually. Photo: Neil Michael

Every time a storm looks like it is about to hit Ireland, Donal Lordan should have more reasons to worry than most of us.

This is because as manager of one of the biggest wind farms in Ireland, he should have at least 38 reasons to not be too cheerful about extreme weather events. That’s the number of turbines he manages.