First wave energy project awarded €23m

Ireland's first wave energy project off the west coast has been awarded € 23 million in funding by the European Commission.

ESB WestWave, which will develop the first wave energy project in Ireland by 2018, is the only Irish project to receive funding under the EU New Entrant Reserve (NER300) scheme.

The project is expected to generate an initial 5MW (equivalent to the electricity consumption of households in nearby Kilrush and Kilkee) of clean renewable electricity from the plentiful wave energy resource available off the west coast of Ireland.

The project team is already developing the site at Killard, near Doonbeg, Co. Clare and procuring technology designs to deploy the pioneering wave energy generators. Construction is expected to start in 2016 with ocean power being generated in 2018.

According to the ESB, the project “ will demonstrate Ireland’s ability to construct, deploy and operate wave energy converters successfully”.

“Demonstration projects like ESB WestWave are critical if we are to realise the ultimate aim of progressing to larger commercial scale projects and a low carbon future,” said John McSweeney, head of innovation with ESB, noting that the funding award is a “huge boost” to the project.