32 per cent of Ireland’s electricity provided by wind in September

Strong winds throughout the second half of last month delivered a third consecutive record-breaking month in wind power generation in Ireland, with July, August and now September all surpassing previous monthly records. The latest figures mean that Irish wind farms provided 32 per cent of the island’s electricity over the first nine months of 2023.

The average wholesale price of electricity in Ireland per megawatt-hour last month was €111.62 down 60 per cent from €283.25 in September 2022. The average wholesale price for days with the most wind power was €88.34, rising to €132.52 on days when we relied almost entirely on fossil fuels.

Noel Cunniffe, CEO of Wind Energy Ireland, said: “Our members provided 32 per cent of Ireland’s electricity in September and the volume of wind generated was up by 25 per cent when compared to the same month last year.

“But we can do better. The development of renewable energy, as well as the grid infrastructure and planning reform required to supply it, must accelerate.”

Image: Wind Energy Ireland

Noel Cunniffe continued: “The progress made on the Planning and Development Bill, as approved by Cabinet this week, has been widely welcomed but reforming the planning system will achieve little if the resources are not in place.

“Budget 2024 will be announced next week and we are calling on the Government to make sure that An Bord Pleanála, the NPWS, MARA, local authorities and environmental NGOs involved in the environmental assessment of renewable energy will have the appropriate funds to hire sufficient expert staff to meet the demand on their services.

“Without this vital investment, we will fail to grow the amount of indigenous energy we produce, fail to continue decreasing wholesale electricity prices and put at risk our ability to reach our legally binding climate targets.”

Noel Cunniffe concluded: “The more renewable energy we can connect, the more secure we make Ireland’s energy supply and the greater protection we have from international markets.”

The results of this report are based on EirGrid’s SCADA data compiled by MullanGrid and on market data provided by ElectroRoute.