Monday, January 24, 2011

Mountlucas Wind Farm

Permission granted for Mountlucas wind farm

Published Date: 16 December 2010

BORD na Móna has welcomed the decision by An Bord Pleanála to grant planning consent for the development of a wind farm at Mountlucas.

The proposed development, to be known as Mountlucas Wind Farm, will have a generating capacity of 80 MW.

When operational it will improve the geographical distribution of wind energy facilities nationally and hence contribute to more balanced inp

ut of wind energy to the grid in support of the Government's 40% target for electricity from renewable energy sources.

This will help to ensure that, by 2020, 40% of electricity generated in the state will come from renewable sources.

A group of residents calling themselves the Concerned Residents of Drumcaw made an objection to an Bord Pleanala citing a number of reasons for their opposition to the proposal last August.

While Bord na Mona claim the wind farm would create 30 new jobs, the group believe there is no guarantee any of these will go to locals

The proposed development forms part of Bord na Móna's long term strategy of diversification beyond it's traditional peat-based businesses. As part of this diversification it is developing a portfolio of generating assets, including wind farms and complementary flexible thermal plant.

Welcoming the planning approval, Gabriel D'Arcy, the Chief Executive commented:"We are delighted with the decision to grant planning consent for the new wind farm at Mountlucas. This is a major milestone on the road to bringing this project to fruition. We will now press on with work on the other strands of the project to bring it to construction stage and a successful conclusion."

It is expected that the construction of the new wind farm will take place over an 18 to 24 month period and will involve an investment of approximately €120m, with up to 30 workers employed on the project at peak.

Once in operation the farm will support a small number of operation and maintenance jobs. When operational, the farm will generate enough electricity to supply the needs of approximately 45,000 homes with green electricity and it will prevent the emission every year of 125,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases.

Those areas of the site that are still in active peat production will not be affected by the development of the wind farm, and peat production will continue as normal.

Mountlucas Wind Farm

Residents object to €120m Mountlucas wind farm

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Credit: Offaly Express, www.offalyexpress.ie 13 August 2010

An objection has been lodged with an Bord Pleanala to a €120 million wind farm for Mountlucas.

A group of residents calling themselves the Concerned Residents of Drumcaw have objected citing a number of reasons for their opposition to the proposal.

While Bord na Mona claim the wind farm would create 30 new jobs, the group believe there is no guarantee any of these will go to locals.

“Bord na Mona said they would be tendering the works, so there is no guarantee any locals will be employed,” said spokesperson for the group Nicola Marsden.

She said while the group are not opposed to job creation or green energy, there are a number of issues they are not happy with.

“The proposal is for 32 wind turbines. At 156 metres they will be the largest in Ireland. We are concerned about how many there will be and how close they are to people’s houses,” said Ms Marsden.

When the idea was first mooted, a public meeting was held in Daingean by Bord na Mona. She said after the information was digested a group of locals sought a meeting with Bord na Mona themselves.

After putting their views together they met with John Lynch from Bord na Mona. They put their concerns to him.

“In terms of noise we were told everything would be within the guidelines, but I want to know how it will impact on my life. We felt if they could be located a bit further away it would be better,” she said.

Ms Marsden outlined that residents also have an issue that during the construction phase heavy lorries and machinery will be using what is essentially, a bog road, and they are questioning the impact it will have on that.

She said some research suggests that constant low humming, like that produced by wind turbines, can have an effect on health.

As well as this the group claim houses located close to the turbines may be affected by shadow flicker.

Also the group are worried what effect the wind turbines will have on house prices and say that Bord na Mona should provide evaluators for this purpose, as they have done this for other projects. Finally she said there is the visual aspect, as the turbines will be located within a kilometre of some houses.

She said while green energy is of benefit, the project is still a money making one for Bord na Mona and they should be sensitive to local needs.

“We don’t want this to impact negatively on our lives or our children’s lives,” said Ms Marsden.

A decision will be made by an Bord Pleanala on December 2.

The proposed development would have a generating capacity of 80 MW and will comprise of 32 wind turbines, access trackways, crane hard-standings, underground cables between the turbines and a 110 kV electricity substation.

It was expected that the construction of the new wind farm wiould take place over an 18 to 24 month period.

Mountlucas Wind Farm

Proposed Wind Farm at Mountlucas, Co. Offaly

Proposed Wind Farm Brochure (PDF 851KB)

Bord na Móna has embarked upon a strategy of diversification beyond it’s traditional peat-based businesses. As part of this diversification it intends to develop a portfolio of electricity generating plants, including wind farms, flexible gas fired generation and peaking units. In line with this, Bord na Móna has selected its existing cutaway bog at Mountlucas in Co. Offaly for the development of a new wind farm.

The company has been involved in milled peat production operations at the site since the 1950s and peripheral parts of the bog are still in active peat production. Those areas of the site that are still in active peat production will not be affected by the development of the wind farm, and peat production will continue as normal.

The proposed development, to be known as Mountlucas Wind Farm will have a generating capacity of 80 MW and will comprise of 32 wind turbines, access trackways, crane hard-standings, underground cables between the turbines and a 110 kV electricity substation. When operational it will improve the geographical distribution of wind energy facilities nationally and hence contribute to more balanced input of wind energy to the grid in support of the Government’s 40% target for electricity from renewable energy sources. This will help to ensure that by 2020 40% of electricity generated in the state will come from renewable sources.

An application for connection of the wind farm to the national grid has been made to EirGrid. It is included in the Gate 3 list of projects to be processed for connection and it is scheduled to get an offer for connection to the system in early 2011. A planning application is currently being prepared for the project and will be submitted to Offaly County Council. As part of the planning process, an environmental impact study (EIS) is being carried out into the potential impacts of the proposed development on the local environment. Public information sessions are also being held in Daingean and Walsh Island on 23rd and 24th June respectively.

It is expected that the construction of the new wind farm will take place over an 18-24 month period with up to 30 workers employed on the project at peak. Once in operation the farm will support a small number of operation and maintenance jobs. When operational, the farm will generate enough electricity to supply the needs of approximately 45,000 homes with green electricity and it will prevent the emission every year of 125,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases. In doing so, it will help to combat climate change and contribute to the country achieving its greenhouse gas emission reduction targets as well as contributing to the achievement of the EU’s mandatory renewable energy target set for Ireland.

Bord na Móna expects to submit the planning application for the project within the next two months.