The Co Cork company has applied to Kilkenny County Council seeking planning permission to develop its Briskalagh wind farm project. The proposed 49 megawatt (MW) project would include seven wind turbines in an area located around 3.5km to the south of Tullaroan.
In response to questions from the Sunday Independent, James Crowley, project development manager at Enerco Energy, said the proposed project would contribute to achieving our ambitious climate and energy targets.
Photo: Enerco Energy
Crowley added that he felt Ireland was not on track to meet its current renewable energy targets.
“There is no ‘silver bullet’ to achieve these ambitious targets,” he said.
“Renewable energy projects, such as the proposed project, are an essential component of the many factors that will be necessary to decarbonise our economy.”
He estimated the Briskalagh project could create up to 100 construction jobs in the development phase, with up to four in the operation and maintenance phase.
By the third quarter of this year, Crowley said Enerco and its associated companies had over 875MW of wind generating capacity in commercial operation or in construction. Around a further 400MW of projects are at various stages of development.
Ireland’s Climate Action Plan includes a target of increasing the share of renewable electricity to 80pc by 2030. This includes deploying 9GW of onshore wind, 8GW of solar power, and at least 5GW from offshore wind projects.
Profits in the sector soared after the energy price spike following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
Enerco, is part of Murnane’s Craydel Group and develops, builds and operates renewables projects. Its website claims it currently operates 15pc of Ireland’s existing wind energy capacity.
The company has also started trading in energy. Enerco trades the output of its wind farms in Ireland’s new electricity market, adding further value in the Irish, British, Dutch and French power markets.
Enerco counts Murnane as a director. He is one of Ireland’s most prolific wind farm entrepreneurs.
Renewable energy generators made huge profits in 2022. Collectively, profits jumped from €125m in 2012 to €509m in 2022 after the spike in energy prices following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, information obtained by The Sunday Times states.