Jul 23 - Irish Times


Details of an [euro]85 million biomass energy plant with the potential to employ 150 people which will be located in the west of Ireland were given to a Dail sub committee yesterday.

The Sub Committee on Job Creation through Use of Renewable Energy Resources was told by Sean Daly, of Carbon Sole Industries, plans were well advanced for the plant.

He said finding a suitable site for the venture which would see 75-100 people involved in the building stage, was one of the difficulties facing the company.

"The plant will probably be located 50 kilometres off the N17 route in the Western Corridor and we have already researched eight sites in the Mayo, Sligo, Leitrim and Roscommon area," he said.

He said the project partners in the proposed development was a Scandinavian company, Skelleftea Kraft, which operated similar operations in Sweden.

The Irish plant, he said, would produce electricity, heat and pellets and would initially produce pellets for heating systems and electricity.

Mr Daly said the hope was if the company could get the proper site and security of supplies of wood, the plant itself could be an anchor centre for the development of green energy in the west.

His presentation and two others given to the sub-committee, had a common thread. All of the submissions said the feed-in tariffs being paid for generating electricity, were too low.

Dr Andrew Walsh, managing director of Celtic BioEnergy, said small-scale producers of energy were not being paid enough for it and this was preventing the development of the industry.

Brendan Cooney, senior executive scientist with Wexford County Council, said anaerobic digestion could handle the 132 million tonnes of slurry and sludge and create thousands of jobs.

He said plans were well advanced for opening a second anaerobic digester in Co Wexford which would use 99,000 tonnes of organic matter and generate 5mw of electricity, enough to power approximately 2,500 homes.

Patrick Berridge, who operates an anaerobic digester and alternative energy on his farm in Co Wexford, said prices being paid for green electricity were too low and far below other European countries.

Fergus Wheatley, chairman of the Sustainable Energy Association, also complained about the feed-in tariffs which were too low and failed to stimulate the industry.

Originally published by SEAN Mac CONNELL Agriculture Correspondent.

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