This article is from page 10 of the 2014-07-15 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 10 JPG
CLARE LOOKS set to lead Ireland in wave energy after a revolutionary new wave energy project planned for West Clare was given a € 23 million grant by the European Commission last year.
It is now understood that construction work on the WestWave waveenergy power plant, which will be located at Killard just off Doonbeg, could get underway as early as 2016.
When completed, the WestWave plant will be the first of its kind in Ireland and will generate enough electricity to meet the needs of an area the size of Kilkee and Kilrush.
The Clare project was the only Irish wave energy project to receive funding under the European Commission’s NER 300 programme, which had funding amounting to € 1 billion to allocate.
A spokesperson for the ESB has indicated that should construction work begin as expected in 2016, the plant could be providing energy locally before the end of 2018.
The company also believes that the West Clare project will provide a platform for scores of similar projects off the Clare coast to emerge.
“Ireland’s oceans have the potential to provide large quantities of indigenous, renewable energy and reduce our dependence on imported fossil fuels.
“Demonstration projects like ESB WestWave are critical if we are to realise the ultimate aim of progressing to larger commercial scale projects and a low carbon future,” said John McSweeney, Head of Innovation at ESB.
“The funding award is a huge boost to the ESB WestWave project and to Ocean Energy development in Ireland and Europe.”
A number of Clare location have already been earmarked for future wave energy development.
The waters around Spanish Point have been identified as having possible the greatest potential for a commercial wave energy plant in Ireland, which Australian company, Carnegie Wave Energy, are already involved in the development of a plant at the White Strand in Miltown Malbay.
While the project is expected to result in some local employment opportunities, it is not clear yet just how many jobs could be provided by the wave energy project in Clare.