RWE, through a joint venture with the Irish renewable energy company Saorgus Energy, has submitted a planning application to Ireland’s An Bord Pleanála for the Dublin Array offshore wind farm.
The planning documents were filed today, 26 February, by Bray Offshore Wind Limited and Kish Offshore Wind Limited, special purpose vehicles (SPVs) created for the purpose of delivering the Dublin Array project.
The Dublin Array offshore wind farm is planned to be built at a site located 10 kilometres off the coast counties Dublin and Wicklow, where between 39 and 50 wind turbines would be installed to make up the total project capacity of up to 824 MW.
Subject to obtaining planning permission and a financial investment decision, construction of the offshore wind farm could begin as early as 2027, with operations projected to start in 2030, according to RWE.
In the application, the Dublin Array joint venture is proposing to build an operations and maintenance (O&M) base at St. Michael’s Pier in Dún Laoghaire and to establish a Community Benefit Fund to invest up to EUR 6.5 million per year in community initiatives and projects.
According to the joint venture, the 824 MW offshore wind farm could create more than 800 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs during the construction phase, with approximately 80 people directly employed and 160 indirectly employed by Dublin Array over the longer-term operational phase.
Dublin Array was granted Maritime Area Consent (MAC) , a key requirement for submitting a planning application, in December 2022.
The offshore wind project, together with three other offshore wind farms, was selected in the first offshore wind auction under the Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (ORESS 1) in 2023 and has a grid connection offer from EirGrid.