The net cost to consumers in Ireland for the 3GW-plus onshore wind fleet is less than €1 per person every year, according to a new report.
Consultants Baringa found that between 2000 and 2020 the sector delivered €2.3bn in savings on the wholesale electricity market driving down prices for consumers and outweighing the amount of funding provided to support wind energy.
The study, which was commissioned by industry association IWEA, analysed a range of costs, including grid integration and expansion, against benefits such as fines avoided, reduced capacity payments to fossil fuel generators and the impact of wind on wholesale power prices.
“For the price of a pint of milk wind energy has become a leader in Ireland’s fight against climate change while making us more energy independent and creating thousands of jobs,” said IWEA chief executive David Connolly (pictured).
“As an industry we’re focused on reducing the price of wind energy even more in coming years. There is enormous potential in developing Ireland’s incredible offshore wind energy resources and still huge opportunities for expanding the amount of renewable energy we can generate onshore.
“With wind energy at its heart, there is no reason why we cannot, alongside solar, hydro and other renewables, be providing 70% of Ireland’s electricity by 2030.”
Baringa director Mark Turner said consumers are largely unaware of the role wind energy has in driving down the price of electricity.
“Every day electricity generators, fossil fuel and renewable, compete against each other in an auction to provide power to the suppliers who sell it on to homes and businesses.
The more wind energy on the system, the more it pushes out fossil fuel generators that are much more costly to run,” he said.