Ireland has amongst the best offshore wind resources in the world, spanning both fixed-bottom and floating wind. This has attracted top tier international developers alongside local players and more than 28 announced projects.
The Irish government could get its highly anticipated ‘MAP Bill’ passed by the end of this year and launch the first offshore wind specific auction, ORESS 1, towards the end of 2022. If this happens, Aegir Insights expects Ireland to achieve its ambitions for 5GW offshore wind energy by 2030. Amongst this will be 3GW of fast-tracked capacity termed “Relevant Projects” at the start of the queue, which is being transitioned from the previous regulatory framework. But what about route-to-market possibilities in Ireland?
Data centers could provide route-to-market for offshore wind in Ireland
Development of large-scale offshore wind in Ireland could go hand-in-hand with expansion of the country's data center industry.
While electricity demand is flattening in most developed economies, Ireland experiences a rising demand. This is partly due to the growing number of data centers. With around 70 operational data centers and many more planned, it is estimated that data centers would account for up to 70% of Ireland’s 2030 electricity demand, if all proposed data centers were constructed.
Tech giants like Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Facebook all have data centers around Dublin. With their ambitious climate pledges and track records of PPAs with renewable electricity generators, they could represent significant route-to-market opportunities for offshore wind projects in Ireland, especially since most announced projects are located in proximity to data center clusters around Dublin.
Want to learn more about potential route-to-market and offshore wind opportunities in Ireland?
Aegir Insights' Ireland market report (subscriber-access) covers offshore wind policy environment, project overview, site conditions. Or reach out to us to learn more about our market intelligence service.