Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 25 July 2023
95. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications to detail the scheduling timeframe for the development of windfarms off the east coast; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36649/23]
View answerUnder the Climate Action Plan 2023, the Government has committed to achieving at least 5GW of installed offshore wind capacity by 2030 and to generating 80% of our electricity demand from renewable sources. The Government’s approach to the development of offshore wind in Ireland involves several workstreams which are underway simultaneously:
The successful outcome of our first offshore wind auction (ORESS 1) saw the procurement of over 3 GW of offshore wind capacity across four projects, three of which are located on the East Coast and one on the West Coast. Subject to development consent from An Bord Pleanála, the first of these projects are expected to be operational from 2027.
The Government's Phase Two Policy Statement, published in March 2023, established the Government policy for accelerating offshore wind deployment via a plan-led system. Consistent with the Policy Statement, all future offshore wind auctions will exclusively procure capacity from specified provisional development areas within Designated Maritime Area Plans (DMAPs), which are provided for in the Maritime Area Planning Act 2021. The first Phase 2 offshore wind auction later this year (ORESS 2.1) will focus on a site off the South coast and planning is underway for subsequent Phase 2 auctions in 2024 which will focus on sites on the East Coast. All developments under Phase 2 are planned to be operational by 2030.
On 13 July, my Department published a consultation on the design of phase 2 offshore wind auctions and this consultation will run until 25 August.
