Conor Dooley’s Post

Thanks to the The Irish Times for this very fair article and it was a pleasure to discuss the unparalleled opportunities for Ireland with Kevin O'Sullivan last week. The Shannon Estuary Taskforce, at the request of the government, gave over 5,000 hours of their personal time to work on this and other opportunities. The then Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, Ministers Eamon Ryan, Simon Coveney, Norma Foley, all with truly inspirational words, launched our report last July including a Plan, agreed by all Stakeholders, to harvest power from Atlantic wind by 2032. One part of that plan requires investment in the 2 deep water ports of the Shannon Estuary, just like the investments that are now underway in many countries in Europe. Minister Ryan was very clear at recent IEA conference in Paris that governments need to ‘get out of the way’ and let industry get on with the work. https://lnkd.in/esXxAas8 We note government support for our State energy company ESB in its efforts to develop 2 floating wind farms for the benefit of the Scottish economy in the last several years. Just like the other developers, ESB have made no progress here on building floating wind farms, despite the need. Our new Taoiseach, Simon Harris has promised ‘a new energy’ for his tenure as leader of our government and has appointed a new generation of Ministers. Let us hope now that this government will show the vision and leadership of the first government of this State who built Ardnacrusha, the world’s largest hydroelectric plant in its day, a century ago. Today, the risk is beyond miniscule for a government spending €110 billion this year, but the rewards over the next century will be orders greater. Power from floating wind @ 10m/s will be equivalent in cost to fixed by 2035. We have 14 m/s wind speeds in the Atlantic, and as power is proportional to the cube of wind speed, 14 is 2.7 times better than 10! In this increasingly digital world, the countries that can offer large amounts of green energy to society will win, and we are already 5 years behind our neighbours. We eagerly await the new energy of this administration. The Shannon Estuary Economic Taskforce plans are ready.

Case studies from Denmark (Port of Esbjerg) and France (Port La Nouvelle, near Narbonne) in the excellent recent article by Kevin O'Sullivan in the The Irish Times shows the impact of vision and ambition for offshore wind elsewhere in Europe. Barry O'Sullivan chairman of the Shannon Estuary Economic Taskforce is quoted as saying "the Shannon estuary should be seen as the green front door for Europe, such is the depth, shelter, wet storage capacity and offshore wind speeds nearby". In order to achieve this, we can learn from our neighbours. "To justify the necessary investments, it is important to adopt a more regional or global perspective. This is the main lesson learned from the experience of Port Esbjerg, which can help the industry reach its full potential.” “Port-La Nouvelle, near Narbonne, in southern France is the only port with dedicated facilities to build and assemble offshore floating wind turbines close to the best windy location in the western Mediterranean. The port is publicly owned by Occitanie/Pyrénées-Méditerranée, the second-largest region in France, and privately managed. It is spending more than €680 million enlarging facilities, with funding secured through the regional government to ensure it does not transgress EU state aid rules. Port-La Nouvelle attracted private investment following the success of the initial partly state-funded projects”. https://lnkd.in/gceTuuMb

It was both an honour and a privilege for the UL Executive MBA 2nd Year class to engage in energetic dialogue and discussion yesterday with Chairman Barry O'Sullivan, and Task Force members @LuukVanderWielen, Siobhan Dolan Clancy & Eamonn Murphy Prof. (Emeritus) regarding the implementation of the Shannon Estuary Economic Task Force report & recommendations as part of their strategy implementation module. A truly inspirational vision which now requires urgent action! #ULMBA#ShannonEstuaryTaskForce#DesirableFutures#SustainableEnterprise

The failure of Denmark’s largest ever offshore wind tender to attract any bids means its government must rethink urgently the terms on which it expects developers to compete, said a national renewables group that warned “wind turbines are not money trees”. #renewables #windpower #windfarms Green Power Denmark WindEurope Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) Danish Energy Agency Ørsted Vattenfall https://lnkd.in/ebEfsfrg

*European Wind energy targets back on track says industry association* According to an article on Euractiv, Giles Dickson, CEO of industry association WindEurope, has declared that despite the pandemic and extensive delays in the licencing and modernisation of legislation across the European Union, the targets set out by the Commission in order to reach a carbon-neutral economy by 2050, through the use of renewable energy are "back on track". The promotion of the technology in northern European countries as well as the rapid development of installations across the Union has provoked optimistic outlooks on the issue. Promea is actively involved on the issue by participating in Project WINd, an initiative co-funded by the European Union aiming to upskill technicians in the field of Wind Energy through the creation of a free, online curriculum aiming to meet the rapidly changing skills needs of the sector. Find out more here: https://lnkd.in/dstMwKrr

📣📣 During a visit to Saint-Nazaire on May 2, French Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire detailed the government's ambitious plan to boost offshore wind capacity to 45 GW by 2050, an increase from the previously set target of 40 GW. This revised goal is part of France's broader Energy-Climate Strategy, which aims for a progressive scale-up of offshore wind power: 4 GW by 2030 and 18 GW by 2035. Currently, France has successfully connected three offshore wind farms. To achieve the 2035 milestone, 15 more projects are in various stages: three nearing completion, three set for deployment by 2031, and nine undergoing the tendering process. Additionally, a new tender for 10 GW is in consideration, reflecting a significant commitment to developing renewable energy within Europe, with at least half of the capacity intended to be locally produced. https://lnkd.in/dey4dnjK

🌬 New wind energy investments will create hundreds of jobs. Eastern Germany is a classic example of a region that has benefited❕ ➡ Find out more in the article below: #ProjectWINd #WindEnergy #RenewableEnergy #ReskillEnergyWorkers

Pretty awesome to see #Australia's #offshorewind efforts be birthed. We'll be looking back at this moment when Australia's clean energy engine got turbo charged. "If all the proponents demonstrate the viability of their projects and gain development approval, the Gippsland wind fleet could generate up to 25 gigawatts of electricity – 40 per cent of the grid’s current capacity – and create a combined 15,000 construction jobs and 7500 ongoing roles. Offshore wind generates what is known as baseload-like power, which means the wind turbines can provide #electricity more consistently and reliably than land-based wind and solar farms. The electricity market operator has forecast that 80 per cent of Australia’s #coal plants will be shut by 2032, with the last plant to close by 2038." Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) Global Offshore Wind Alliance (GOWA) Ørsted Star of the South Iberdrola Corio Generation OW Ocean Winds Link: https://lnkd.in/eKTK5KpS

Global floating offshore wind pipeline has surged by 9% in the past year, reaching 266GW according to RenewableUK! This represents an addition of 22GW across 31 new projects around the world - bringing the total to 316 globally with the bulk of future capacity still in development, just 245MW in current operation. Key takeaways: - Europe leads the way with 62% of the global capacity. - Italy holds the largest pipeline at 41.3GW, but many projects remain in early stages. - The UK maintains its leadership, with 33.1GW in its pipeline, 75% of which is in Scottish waters. The need for a stronger focus on scaling up supply chains and reducing costs is crucial for the sector's future in order to cope with this increased number of developments and therefore demand on turbines, installation vessels and offshore staff to install and maintain them. This rapid growth highlights the vast potential of floating wind to accelerate the transition to clean energy worldwide. #renewableEnergy #offshorewind #floatingwind #windenergy https://lnkd.in/eZZpN5MS

#Offshorewind's 'new wave' of markets - likes of #SouthKorea, #Australia and #Brazil - well poised to fuel end-of-decade boom if policymakers and industry can get their act together, says Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) in latest annual update Asia Wind Energy Association WindEurope International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) #renewableenergy #windpower