SSE Renewables has announced its intention to submit a planning request for the onshore grid infrastructure of the Arklow Bank 2 offshore wind farm. This is the first time that an offshore wind developer will seek consent for this type of infrastructure in Ireland .

The company said it would submit the request in the coming weeks to the Irish planning council, An Bord Pleanála, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Sure Partners.

The proposed development to connect the 520 MW phase 2 of the Arklow Bank wind farm to the Irish transmission grid includes a 220 kV substation at Avoca River Business Park in Arklow, County Wicklow, with a associated transport complex, a connection complex and a connection from the new substation. to the existing national transport network.

The plans also include an underground cable route from the proposed substation to the landing point at Johnstown North, Arklow, where it will meet the planned submarine offshore cables connecting to the wind farm.

“This impending submission is the culmination of nearly two years of work by members of our project team and is the first-ever land transmission grid infrastructure application for an offshore wind farm in Ireland, marking another milestone. in the delivery of the country’s first large-scale offshore wind farm â€, mentionned James O’Hara, Arklow Bank Project Manager at SSE Renewables.

A statutory consultation process for members of the public, led by An Bord Pleanála, will begin on May 5 and end on June 24, and will make available to the public a comprehensive environmental impact assessment report and a Natura impact assessment.

SSE Renewables, through its subsidiary Sure Partners, has also requested from the Minister of Housing, Local Authorities and Heritage an Estran Permit in order to facilitate the site investigation work necessary to inform the engineering and design of Arklow Bank’s offshore infrastructure 2. Statutory consultation The phase of this work will be managed by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage from April 22 to May 21.

Arklow Bank 2 will be located in a rental area between 6 and 13 kilometers off the coast of County Wicklow, east of Arklow. Phase 2 development builds on Arklow Bank’s 7-turbine, 25 MW Phase 1, which SSE co-developed with GE Energy in 2004 as a demonstration project.

Arklow Bank Phase 1 is the first and only offshore wind farm operating in Ireland and Arklow Bank 2 is on track to become the country’s first major offshore wind farm, with the aim of starting to generate electricity from by 2025.

“We are ready to produce new offshore wind power at Arklow Bank by 2025. This will not only jumpstart the achievement of Ireland’s offshore wind targets, it will help meet our national carbon reduction targets of 7%. per year and get closer to our goals. ambitious climate action targets, it will also stimulate local investments and create local jobs â€, O’Hara mentionned.