This article is from page 22 of the 2011-11-08 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 22 JPG
A SITE off the coast of north Clare has been identified by the WestWave wave energy company as a likely site for Ireland’s first ever commercial wave energy field.
The north Clare site is one of four locations identified by WestWave which is an alternative energy company owned by ESB International – for the development of the revolutionary offshore energy resource, along with two sites in Mayo and one in Galway.
It is as yet unclear which site will be used for the first WestWave energy field but it is likely that if the first site is deemed a success, the production will spread to the other three sites.
While the exact location of the proposed site in north Clare has not been confirmed, The Clare People understand that the site is located in the Ballyvaughan area.
According to ESB International Ocean Energy Project Manager, James Tedd, the target date for electricity generation to begin at the chosen site is 2015. If that target date is to be met, the planning process for the proposed development will have to begin next year, with construction to start in 2013 at the latest.
A number of government energy agencies, semi-state organisations and private companies have examined a number of locations off the Clare coast with a view to producing wave energy.
Wave energy can be produced in a number of different ways, meaning that some forms of generators may be more suitable to some locations rather than others. A number of Irish-based companies currently have working prototypes but no company is yet to produce a full-sized wave electricity generator for use in the field.
The ESB is committed to reducing its own carbon emissions by 50 per cent by 2030 and to be ‘net-zero’ in carbon emissions by 2050. According to Mr Tedd, the company hoped to derive at least one-third of its electricity generation from renewable sources by 2020 – and ocean energy would provide a major segment of that.
WestWave is working with four key technology partners towards the selection of the optimal device. These are Wavebob, Ocean Energy, Pelamis and Aquamarine Power, which is testing off Scotland’s Orkney Islands.
WestWave has been approved by the Government as one of two Irish bids for the € 4.5 billion in funding set aside by the European Union under the New Entrants Reserve (NER) 300 programme for low carbon technologies.