ESB has announced that Voltalia will be the main engineering, procurement and construction contractor for the development of Middleton House Solar Farm, located to the northeast of Lanesborough, Ireland.
The construction phase of the multi-million euro project is scheduled to commence in September 2024 and once complete, the solar farm will generate 57MW of clean electricity that will have enough capacity to power over 15,000 homes.
Middleton House Solar Farm will connect to the electricity network via a new 5km cable route along the disused peat rail line, which was in use from the late 1950s to just a few years ago, to carry peat to the carbon intensive power station.
Now ESB’s solar team is connecting a new clean form of energy to the national grid – utilising the existing connection infrastructure at the former Lough Ree Power Site.
ESB’s Net Zero by 2040 strategy includes a commitment to deliver more than a fivefold increase in renewable generation to 5000MW, with solar playing an important part in this alongside offshore and onshore wind, battery and green hydrogen projects.
Middleton House Solar Farm forms part of ESB’s pipeline of utility-scale solar farms throughout the midlands, south & south-east of the country.
Eoin Naughton, solar development manager at ESB, said: “Lanesborough has a long and rich history of indigenous electricity generation.
“This announcement marks not just the commencement of Middleton House Solar Farm but the revitalisation of the midlands remaining as a strategic energy hub as part of Ireland’s clean energy future.
“Solar provides an excellent source of clean, low-cost energy which will help to further reduce our dependency on imported fossil fuels and to achieve energy independence.
“We now look forward to working with Voltalia to deliver Middleton House Solar Farm.”
Sébastien Clerc, chief executive of Voltalia, added: “Voltalia is delighted to have been selected as the engineering, procurement and construction service provider for the Middleton House project.
“After the first collaboration for the Timahoe North project, Voltalia is thrilled to see ESB trust confirmed with this additional contract. As a key partner Voltalia will continue to support ESB’s ambition to reach its ESG objectives by 2040.”
Full planning permission has been granted by Longford County Council and the project was successful within the RESS 2 auction in June 2022.
During the development of this project, ESB reiterated its commitment to working closely with the local communities surrounding the site to ensure the successful delivery of the project.
Once the Middleton House Solar Farm is operational, a community benefit fund will be made available which will distribute grants to organisations in the local area.
The fund is to be used for the wider economic, environmental, social and cultural well-being of the local community.