Consultancy Gavin & Doherty Geosolutions (GDG) has been commissioned by Wind Energy Ireland to undertake a study of Ireland’s national ports ahead of buildout of offshore wind.
The assessment will seek to clarify the current position, as well as identifying the strategic port development opportunities for the future where relevant.
The study, funded by Belfast Harbour, DP Energy, ESB, Inis Offshore Wind, Orsted and RWE Renewables, will focus on enabling both fixed-bottom and floating offshore wind projects to be facilitated from Irish ports.
The output of the study will be a report that documents the anticipated industry requirements for the construction of offshore renewable energy projects and assesses these needs against existing, and likely, available port infrastructure at a range of Irish ports.
There are relatively few port locations that could support the offshore wind industry and those suitable will need to be benchmarked against up-to-date criteria, GDG said.
To ensure a robust long-term offshore wind sector, it is imperative that a local supply-chain is developed to service the industry.