Vårgrønn and Energia Renewables Join Forces on Irish Offshore Wind

Outlook & Strategy

August 1, 2023, by Adnan Memija

Vårgrønn, a joint venture between Plenitude (Eni) and HitecVision, and Energia Renewables have formed a partnership to develop offshore wind projects in Ireland, with the potential to deliver up to 1.8 GW of new capacity by 2030.

The partnership said that it will initially focus on Ireland’s south and east coasts, where Energia Renewables have already completed development work over the last four years at a North Celtic Sea site (with a capacity of up to 900 MW) and a South Irish Sea site (also with a capacity of up to 900 MW).

The North Celtic Sea project will be located between 10 kilometres and 25 kilometres off the Waterford coast. The wind farm is expected to generate enough green electricity to power over 500,000 Irish households.

When it comes to the South Irish Sea offshore wind project, once all approvals are in place, assuming there are no delays, construction of the wind farm could start as early as 2026, according to its developer.

Seabed surveys have been completed across both sites, almost three years of aerial data on birds and mammals have been collected, and preparations for the environmental impact assessments have commenced, said the partners.

Engagement programmes with local fisheries and communities are also in place. According to the press release, the preparatory work positions both these projects to be capable of being operational by 2030, subject to government policy.

“Through the development work completed to date, our partnership is uniquely placed to deliver new offshore capacity on the south and east coasts by 2030, and in so doing, make a significant contribution to Ireland’s offshore wind targets”, said Ian Thom, Energia Group CEO.

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“Having strong local expertise is critical to successfully delivering projects that provide affordable power at scale and speed while contributing to local jobs creation. Energia’s long-standing local presence and track record with delivering a wide range of onshore renewable energy projects in Ireland, therefore makes them an ideal partner for us”, said Olav Heltand, Vårgrønn CEO.

The joint venture announcement between the two companies follows Ireland’s first offshore wind auction in May under its new Offshore Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (ORESS).

In the auction, Ireland selected four projects with a combined capacity of nearly 3,100 MW.

The country’s total target for offshore wind rises to at least 37 GW by 2050. This forms part of the government’s target to provide 80 per cent of the country’s electricity from renewable sources by 2030.