GridWest investment greeted as first step in pushing renewable energy in region

By JACQUELINE HOGGE PLANS to connect the West of Ireland's renewable energy resources to the national electricity grid have been welcomed by an Athenry-based firm that has invested heavily in green energy in recent years. Eirgrid is proposing to build new transmission lines linking Mayo to both Galway and Roscommon.[private] However, C&F Green Energy, a company that employs 260 in Cashla, near Athenry in the construction of wind turbines, is hoping the €240m investment in Grid West will pave the way for smaller and medium sized enterprises to benefit from renewable energy. 'This is great news for the area and we certainly welcome it but in terms of making renewable energy more accessible locally, we are more interested in getting Minister Rabbitte to increase the feed-in payment that makes it conducive to small and medium sized businesses to avail of green energy,' said Sean Ganley, sales and marketing manager of C&F Green Energy. Local effect 'This investment will benefit the megawatt industry but we are hoping that it will have a knock-on effect locally, both in terms of job creation and expanding the uptake of renewable energy.' The Grid West project, announced by An Taoiseach Enda Kenny last Friday, will initially consist of a new high capacity power line linking Bellacorick in Co Mayo to a strong point on the transmission grid. Based on the region's renewable potential it is envisaged that, in time, the project will involve two high capacity power lines from Bellacorick to both Cashla in Co Galway and Flagford in Co Roscommon. 'The West of Ireland is particularly rich in renewable energy resources and has the potential for much job creation,' said Mr Kenny. 'Harnessing and exploiting this resource for Ireland will require detailed planning involving high levels of engagement between communities and EirGrid that will allow the construction of critical infrastructure for the benefit of the West and for Ireland. 'This infrastructure will also assist the region to attract inward investment that requires a strong reliable source of power.' Raise feed-in payment However, Mr Ganley said the real development needed for the country as a whole when it came to renewable energy, was to increase the feed-in payments that would bring Ireland in line with other European countries. 'The announcement of Grid West is significant but it will involve massive wind farms throughout the regions concerned,' he said. 'In order to make renewable energy a reality for people on the ground the government needs to make it an affordable option. 'We're hoping the fact investment is going into this on a large scale, they will realise the need to make it pay on a smaller scale too, by increasing the feed-in payments for people selling excess energy back to the national grid. 'We will continue to lobby the Minister on this issue and are confident that in time, the correct decision will be made by the government as part of its overall strategy for renewable energy.' Grid West project manager Alan McHugh said the project will involve a number of steps over the coming years. 'The public will be consulted extensively through a series of consultations to gather information and feedback from the earliest stages of development right through to the completion of the project,' he said. 'The first stage of the Grid West Project is to publish and gather information on the study area, the search area within which the project will be located.'[/private]