The Irish wind energy industry has warned there is a growing risk that dozens of Ireland’s wind farms will be forced to shut down before the end of the decade unless urgent changes to the planning system are introduced.
Without the changes approximately 20% of the country’s installed wind energy capacity is in danger, making the Climate Action Plan targets essentially unachievable and increasing its reliance on energy imports, according to Wind Energy Ireland.
The warning comes as Wind Energy Ireland today publishes a new report, Repowering Ireland: How we stay global leaders in onshore wind energy, which was produced by planning and environmental consultancy MKO.
This report shows up to 76 wind farms with an installed capacity of 854MW will reach the end of their planning permission between now and 2030.
If they cannot extend their planning permission or repower then they will be decommissioned.
Wind Energy Ireland chief executive Noel Cunniffe said: “We need to make it easier for wind farm owners to extend the duration of their planning permissions and, in the new Wind Energy Guidelines to be published before the end of the year, ensure the same problem does not arise in future.
“There is simply no reason, in the middle of twin climate and energy crises, to decommission operational wind farms because of planning restrictions, unsupported by evidence, imposed decades ago.”
Wind Energy Ireland has identified a series of recommendations, which include allowing operational wind farms to continue operating by making it easier for them to get permission from the planning authorities to extend their planning permission.
Historically, most wind farm planning permissions in Ireland included a condition which restricts their operational life to 20 or 25 years.
To continue generating, the wind farm operator must apply for planning permission for life extension. This can be a costly and time-consuming process with no guarantee of success.
If an operational wind farm wishes to keep generating beyond its planning permission it should be permitted to do so.
Additionally, in the new Wind Energy Guidelines proposed for publication later this year, the planning permission lifetime for onshore wind farms should be increased to align with the approach of the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities.
The regulator requires that the operational lifetime for a wind farm’s grid connection should be 50 years so increasing the lifetime for the wind farm to match this would seem logical.
Government also needs to put in place policies to support repowering, stated the trade body.
In Barnesmore, Donegal, for example, there is a project with planning permission to repower an existing 15MW wind farm with 25 turbines and replace it with 13machines capable of generating 60MW to 70MW.