Latest news with #SSERenewables
Irish Independent
26-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
12 youths to experience sailing voyage first-hand from Wicklow to Wales
Funded through County Wicklow Partnership, Arklow Municipal District and SSE Renewables, the 'Celtic Tide' voyage is due to depart from Arklow Harbour on August 5, and returns on August 9. Expressions of interest were circulated to post-primary schools, Youthreach, local youth services and through the school completion programme, inviting young people aged between 14 and 17 years to indicate their interest so for the first time young people from Arklow can participate in the experience. Cllr Peir Leonard said: 'This is a first for Arklow. The 'Celtic Tide' voyage aims to foster personal development; leadership skills; promote cultural exchange and international understanding; encourage environmental stewardship and an appreciation of the marine environment. 'The 12 young people aged between 14-17 years, selected to participate in this unique experience will learn about the impact of human activity on the oceans, and how to preserve and protect our coastal ecosystems. 'This hands-on experience will inspire a lifelong passion for ocean conservation and encourage participants to advocate for sustainable practices in their communities. I'm especially grateful to key people involved in the planning and delivery of 'Celtic Tide' including Fiona Creedon, County Wicklow youth officer, Jennifer Maher from Co. Wicklow Partnership and Sindy Offer from Sail Training Ireland.' Sail Training Ireland will facilitate the planning and operational elements of the voyage. Jennifer Maher, who works in social inclusion and community activation at County Wicklow Partnership, added: stated: 'This offers young people an opportunity to engage in structured, inclusive activities that promote personal growth, informal learning, and skills development. By participating, they can enhance their educational outcomes and explore pathways to further education and employment, aligning with SICAP's mission to empower individuals and foster social inclusion.' Community engagement manager on SSE's Arklow Bank Wind Park 2 offshore project Deirdre Keogh commented: 'SSE Renewables is delighted to come on board as a key contributing sponsor of the upcoming 'Celtic Tide' youth sail training voyage. "The sponsorship request matched several of our key funding criteria including projects that are engaged in enjoying or preserving the marine environment and its local heritage, youth skills' development, sustainability learning, and social inclusion.'
Business News Wales
22-05-2025
- Business
- Business News Wales
Geo-logging Company Uses New Technologies to Capture Data for £1.5bn Hydroelectric Scheme
North Wales firm Robertson GEO is capturing vital geotechnical data for a £1.5 billon hydroelectric scheme. Located on the banks of Loch Lochy, near Inverness in Scotland, Coire Glas will be the first hydro storage project of its size to be constructed in the UK since Dinorwig Power Station in the 1980s. The Conwy-based provider of borehole geophysical and petrophysical logging technologies and services was contracted by Strabag UK Ltd to collect a comprehensive set of geotechnical statistics for the development. Driven by energy firm SSE Renewables, the site will have a potential capacity of up to 1300MW, generating enough power for up to three million homes in a matter of minutes. Robertson GEO Managing Director Simon Garantini said the business – which also has locations in the US and Hong Kong – deployed a suite of geophysical probes in an exploratory tunnel more than one kilometre long and 700m below ground level. A 'challenging' task, he revealed the operation required equipment and new techniques they had never used before, including a 2,000m winch enclosed in a safety cage. 'The exploratory work being undertaken for Coire Glas is among the most extensive ground investigations of its time, collecting and analysing a huge volume of geotechnical data before construction begins,' said Simon. 'The comprehensive scope of the ground investigation is not least required due to the site's proximity to the Great Glen fault line, which is visible from outer space. 'The geotechnical data will observe ground conditions to inform on the potential risks and challenges posed to a successful delivery of the project, so this was a hugely important task, pivotal to them moving forward.' The tunnel included three 'galleries' from which a series of long, near horizontal and angled boreholes were drilled, and a series of short 'televiewer' boreholes for imaging, deformability and stress testing. Work continued 24/7 with two teams of two engineers alternating on back-to-back 12-hour shifts. 'Logistics underground could be difficult with equipment needing to be moved around underground whilst many other tasks were occurring simultaneously,' said Simon. 'The most challenging aspect of the logging operation was the development and deployment of a 'push' system to place logging tools in horizontal boreholes. 'Our team has considerable experience in using them on horizontal boreholes up to about 40m in length. However, these were up to around 280m so the magnitude of the task could not be underestimated.' He added: 'There were other challenges – notably in designing a push system for the raised boreholes up to 22m in length – but a manual arrangement using customised tubular push rods was engineered, which worked successfully. 'The work environment was noisy at times with the inevitable dripping water on sensitive equipment such as laptops, though together we resolved all these issues. 'The geophysical logging campaign we undertook formed a vital component of the overall ground investigation, providing high-quality calibrated data, not attainable by other means, at centimetre resolution in the boreholes.'
Irish Independent
19-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Electric vehicles, efficiency tips and eco games to feature at Wicklow Energy Awareness Day 2025
Sustainable Energy Communities (SEC) from Wicklow, Arklow and Greystones recently joined representatives from Wicklow County Council's Climate Action team, Wicklow Tidy Towns, and patron, SSE Renewables, to launch the event. It will take place at the Pastoral Centre on St Patrick's Road in Wicklow town, on June 14, from 11 am to 4 pm and is free for the public to attend. Sylvester J Burke from Wicklow Sustainable Energy Community, which is hosting the event with support from sponsor SSE Renewables, said that Wicklow SEC is delighted to host their third Wicklow Energy Awareness Day. He added: 'The community can visit the exhibition stands for helpful advice and information on energy efficiency grants, PV solar panels and heat pump installation, and tips for insulating homes. The event will showcase EV cars and include a range of exhibition stands. 'Children can enjoy eco fun games, and Gavin Harte from the SEAI Science Team will once again provide information through rolling half-hour workshops which step through the process of moving towards better energy efficiency for home and businesses alike. 'We want to acknowledge our thanks to everyone involved and to our patron, SSE Renewables.' Community engagement manager from SSE Renewables Deirdre Keogh said: 'We'll be joining colleagues from our retail brand, SSE Airtricity, at the event. Our support for this initiative is an important reminder of the need to move locally, nationally and globally away from carbon-heavy energy sources derived from fossil fuels. 'The realisation of our Arklow Bank Wind Park 2 offshore project can support renewable energy ambitions delivered at scale for county and country alike.'
Irish Times
12-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Irish Sea wind farm developers asked to revise planning applications amid concerns about cumulative effect
An Bord Pleanála (ABP) has asked developers of Irish Sea wind farms to revise their planning applications to take into account the cumulative effect of other similar wind farms proposed for the Irish Sea. The request sent to the developers of the Oriel, Arklow and North Irish Sea wind farms on April 17th is likely to have a significant impact, particularly if, as expected, it is extended to the Codling and Dublin Array wind farms. Between them, both wind farms form a 33km line of wind turbines from Dún Laoghaire to Wicklow . The Codling and Dublin Array turbines would be taller than Bray Head, which is the tallest item on the east coast. The Dublin Array site is 9km off the coast at Greystones and the Codling Bank site is between 13km and 22km south of that, off the coast of Wicklow. The Arklow Bank Wind Park 2 project is planned to be located about 13 kilometres off the coast of Arklow, alongside the existing Arklow Bank Wind Park 1 farm. The Wind Park 2 development would provide up to 800MW of electricity, which is central to plans for two large-scale Echelon data centres in Arklow, announced at the weekend. READ MORE In letter to Sure Partners Limited, a subsidiary of developers SSE Renewables, seen by The Irish Times, ABP said: 'The applicant is requested to revise the submitted cumulative assessment taking into account other proposed wind farms in the Irish Sea.' The letter added: 'This assessment should include each of the Irish Sea Phase 1 ORE Projects, namely (Oriel WF (ABP-319799-24), NISA WF (ABP-319866-24), Codling Wind Park (ABP 320768-24), and Dublin Array WF (ABP-321992-25).' Crucially, the letter also said 'the board considers that insufficient justification has been provided with respect to how the proposed [Arklow Bank 2] development could be considered visually acceptable, noting the conclusions of the Seascape, Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment (SLVIA) [report].' [ Why international firm Corio withdrew from plans for Sceirde Rocks wind farm off Connemara's coast Opens in new window ] [ Ireland has a dismal amount of tree cover but 'wild' is partly between our ears Opens in new window ] The cumulative visual impact of the nearshore wind farms proposed for the Irish Sea was raised by members of the public and statutory bodies such as Fáilte Ireland, in submissions to ABP regarding a number of the proposed wind farms. In a submission on a planning application for the Dublin Array, former chairman of Wicklow County Council Derek Mitchell said the application did not show a map of the proposed, neighbouring, Codling Bank wind farm. Mr Mitchell said 'the cumulative impact has received little consideration'. He told ABP the wind turbines would 'have 115 degree arc of view from Greystones, almost the entire sea horizon'. Mr Mitchell proposed a 10km gap between the Codling and Dublin Array farms which he said would reduce the wind farms in the arc of vision to 75 degrees. The State's long-term ambition for offshore renewable energy in Ireland, The Future Framework, aims to deliver 20GW of offshore wind energy by 2040 and at least 37GW in total by 2050.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Tens of thousands of seabirds ‘at risk' from proposed wind farm
Plans for one of the world's biggest offshore wind farms on Scotland's east coast would kill and displace an estimated 31,000 seabirds, according to wildlife charities. Kittiwakes, gannets and herring gulls would be most affected, according to an impact assessment for a 307-turbine scheme at Berwick Bank in the Firth of Forth. Scottish ministers are being urged by five charities, including RSPB Scotland, to reject plans submitted by energy giant SSE Renewables on the grounds that the wind farm would undermine efforts to protect nature. The proposed site would cover an area four times the size of Edinburgh. It would be located about 23 miles from seabird colonies at Bass Rock and St Abb's Head National Nature Reserve, cared for by The National Trust for Scotland (NTS) and home to about 45,000 seabirds during breeding season, including protected kittiwake, guillemot, razorbill and shag species. Analysis carried out for SSE three years ago predicted hundreds of bird collisions a year, which the charities said could mean tens of thousands killed and displaced over the scheme's 35-year lifespan. However, the SSE said its designs have been altered to minimise potential risks to seabirds, after consultation with stakeholders including RSPB and the Scottish Seabird Centre. It is understood that the 31,000 bird deaths estimate is based on a worst-case predicted impact scenario produced in a report by SEE in December 2022. However, a letter to John Swinney, the First Minister, calling for the application to be rejected has been signed by RSPB Scotland, NTS, the Scottish Wildlife Trust, the Marine Conservation Society and the Scottish Seabird Centre. Anne McCall, the director of RSPB Scotland, said Berwick Bank is one of the best places on earth for seabirds, which have been in significant decline. 'I've never seen a development with so much potential damage,' she added. The conservation groups argue that technology has advanced significantly since Berwick Bank was conceived and that floating wind farms, further offshore, would be a better alternative. SSE Renewables submitted a planning application to the Scottish government in late 2022 and is awaiting a decision. It said it has conducted one of the largest known ornithology surveys in the world as part of the application process and that it disagrees strongly with the points put forward in the letter. The company insists that seabird densities are 'not exceptional' in the area and that the impact on seabirds would be among the lowest of any wind farm site. Both those claims are disputed by RSPB Scotland. Alex Meredith, the project director at SSE Renewables' Berwick Bank, said: 'Reducing our reliance on fossil fuels is critical to ensuring we prevent the worst possible impacts of climate change which, according to the most recent expert assessment, is the biggest single threat to Scottish seabirds. 'The UN has already warned the world could warm by a massive 3.1C this century without greater action. 'Developing a world-leading offshore wind industry, with projects of the scale and ambition of Berwick Bank, is a key part of combating the catastrophic consequences of that. 'But the reality is that Berwick Bank has now been in planning for almost 30 months and whilst we will always continue to work constructively with stakeholders we must move forward urgently with action and delivery for the climate and our iconic Scottish seabirds.' SSE said it is also committed to supporting seabirds and the productivity of key colonies around the coast of Scotland. Diarmid Hearns, the interim director of conservation and policy at NTS, said: 'Climate change is one of the biggest threats to seabirds and offshore wind development is important to meet Scotland's climate ambitions, therefore we are fully supportive of it. 'However, installations must be located with sensitivity to the very habitats we're trying to protect from climate impacts - the proposed site for Berwick Bank is likely to cause high levels of ecological damage and severely impact the seabird colonies at St Abb's Head.' The wind farm would generate 4.1 gigawatts of electricity which is enough to power about six million homes. The electricity would be brought to shore at Dunbar in East Lothian and Blyth in Northumberland. The Scottish government said it would not be appropriate to comment on a live application. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
