12 May 2022
By Mary Bermingham
mary@TheCork.ie
8 large solar farms to be built in Cork will bringing 40MW to the grid – Sufficient to power 8,000 homes
Bord Gáis Energy has announced that it will support Amarenco in the development of eight solar farms in Co Cork that will power approximately 8,000 homes.
Amarenco is an independent producer of green energy that invests in, builds and operates solar PV powerplants and the facilities will be among the first utility scale solar production in Ireland. Under a long-term arrangement, Bord Gáis Energy will manage and offtake the electricity produced from these solar farms and include it as part of its supply portfolio.
File photo of well known Cork Businessman John Mullins is Executive Chairman of Amarenco Solar. His personal accolades include a Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur (Legion of Honour) from France, and being a previous CEO of the then Bord Gáis
Executive Chairman of Amarenco Solar, John Mullins said:
“We are very pleased to announce this partnership with Bord Gáis Energy and we are confident that all of the green power produced by our solar farms in Co. Cork will be provided to Bord Gáis Energy customers across the country. We hope that this is the first of many such partnerships with Bord Gáis Energy in Ireland. We already have a successful partnership with the parent of Bord Gáis Energy, Centrica, in Spain.”
Managing Director of Bord Gáis Energy, Dave Kirwan said:
“Tackling climate change is one of the most important issues facing our society and as a leading energy and services provider for households and businesses, we take our role in supporting Ireland’s sustainable future seriously. Our ambition is to become a net zero business by 2045 and to provide products, services and solutions to help our customers on their journey to net zero. We’re committed to supporting the growth of renewables in Ireland and over the past number of years have been building our portfolio to expand the renewable energy we can supply to our customers. Our partnership with Amarenco not only supports this ambition but also contributes to decarbonising the energy sector.”
The eight solar farms, each of which will generate up to 5MW of power, are all located in Co. Cork. Bord Gáis Energy recently announced partnerships with Neoen and Obton, powered by Shannon Energy, to manage over 176MW of power from a combined 14 solar farms. When added to Bord Gáis Energy’s current renewable portfolio, which is in excess of 220MW of wind production, the company will supply renewable power to over 164,000 homes across the country.
Bord Gáis Energy will be the only energy provider partnering with Amarenco on this project which is the renewable energy firm’s first construction of Irish solar farms.
