Mainstream’s 5GW Energy Bridge project

Mainstream’s Energy Bridge project will be a catalyst for the restoration of the economic wellbeing of the Irish midlands. It will be of a scale that will have national impact and establish the midlands as a global center of excellence for sustainable and renewable energy. A new industry will be created. With government support gathering in Ireland, the UK and Europe, this project is set to become reality.

Over the past two years, Mainstream has been developing the Energy Bridge project, which will generate 5,000MW of wind power in Ireland for export to the UK from 2018. This power will be transported by private underground cables onshore to the Irish coast, and then on the seabed to the UK where it will connect to the UK’s national grid.

Energy Bridge will provide unique opportunities for both Ireland and the UK. For Ireland, it will create much needed jobs and generate hundreds of millions of euro in revenue to both local and national governments, communities and landowners.

Ireland’s natural wind resource far exceeds the country’s requirements. Exporting wind power makes sense as the UK needs secure, dependable, low carbon energy sources to meet its growing demand for energy and more particularly to replace the large scale greenhouse gas emitting coal plant it will have to close under the EU large combustion plant directive by 2020. For the UK, it will also significantly contribute to its 2020 renewable energy targets.

Already, Mainstream has private land secured in seven counties with a footprint that will allow an initial development of 1,250MW in the midlands. Extensive environmental studies and public consultations are currently underway. A planning application will be submitted in 2015.

Is there political appetite to make this project a reality? The answer is yes. In early 2013, Pat Rabbitte, the Irish Energy Minister, and UK Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, Ed Davey, signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the export of green energy from Ireland to Britain. This paved the way for both governments to work on the political, regulatory and technical elements that will feed into an inter-governmental agreement (IGA) to enable renewable energy interconnections.

Once the IGA is signed, it will become clear how renewable energy imports from Ireland will be treated in the UK’s energy market. The UK Parliament is currently enacting an Energy Bill, which introduces a new low-carbon energy support mechanism that will also apply to renewable power generated from outside the UK. Ireland will qualify. Andy Kinsella, Director, Mainstream, responsible for the Energy Bridge project, says that he expects to the see the Energy Bill passed at Westminster this autumn and the IGA signed by both Ireland and the UK, with EU support, by the end of the year.

“Energy Bridge, and renewable energy interconnection is strongly supported on both sides of the Irish Sea, but also in the EU,” Kinsella says. “Energy policy objectives across Europe are to provide a secure, affordable and low-carbon energy supply and Energy Bridge does just that. It also advances the EU’s objective of creating an internal energy market. To speed up the transition to a common market, the EU Commission will pass regulations imminently that will support projects like Energy Bridge through expedited permitting procedures and access to funding.”

“We’ve already had a lot of interest and support from EU institutions for building Energy Bridge,” Kinsella says, “and the project was designated by the EU as a ‘Project of Common Interest’ in the draft regulations. This designation, along with the signing of the IGA later this year demonstrate that Energy Bridge is a project the governments and the EU want to happen.”

For more information contact:

Andy Kinsella
Mainstream Renewable Power
Top Floor, Arena House
Arena Road, Sandyford
Dublin 18
Phone: +353 (0)1 290 2000
www.mainstreamrp.com
www.energybridge.ie