UK's SSE Has Fingers Crossed for Second Irish Windfarm

UK-based SSE has filed an application with Ireland's planning authority, An Bord Pleanála, for the offshore infrastructure needed for its planned Arklow Bank Wind Park 2 project in the Irish Sea.

If approved and constructed, the Arklow Bank 2 project, with a capacity of up to 800MW, could generate enough renewable energy to power approximately 850,000 homes annually and reduce CO2 emissions by over 800,000 tonnes each year.

This application follows nearly seven years of development work and builds on the initial offshore wind generation at Arklow Bank, where a 25MW project was first commissioned in 2003.

Arklow Bank 2 stands out as one of Ireland's most advanced offshore wind projects, having already secured planning permission for an operations and maintenance base at Arklow Harbour, as well as for onshore cabling and a substation to connect the project to Ireland’s national grid.

This application represents the final planning consent required before moving to the construction phase.

Pending planning consent and a final investment decision by SSE, construction of Arklow Bank 2 could commence as early as 2026, with the first energy generation expected by 2029. This project will contribute to Ireland’s goal of achieving at least 5GW of offshore renewable energy by 2030.

Moreover, Arklow Bank 2 is projected to deliver a national economic benefit of up to €800 million and support approximately 2,300 direct and indirect jobs during its development and operational phases.

The planning application details the construction of up to 56 offshore wind turbines, depending on the final design, across an array area of about 63 square kilometers.

Each turbine will be mounted on steel monopile foundations. The application also includes plans for two offshore substation platforms and the associated export, inter-array, and interconnector sub-sea cabling to link the wind farm to Ireland’s national grid at Johnstown North.