The Shelmalere Offshore Wind Farm is located in Ireland. (Credit: Mariusz Paździora at commons.wikimedia.org)
The project will have a capacity of up to 1GW. (Credit: Nicholas Doherty on Unsplash)
DP Energy and Iberdrola appoint Fehily Timoney and Company as consultants for the project. (Credit: DP Energy) at the official opening of the new DP Energy office at 1 Horgan’s Quay in the heart of Cork City. DP Energy, one of Ireland’s leading developers of renewable energy projects, and global energy leader Iberdrola have officially opened their new Ireland Offshore Wind Joint Venture Office in Horgan’s Quay, Cork City. The new 1,300 sq. ft facility at 1 Horgan’s Quay on Waterfront Square in Cork City. This is the second DP Energy office in Cork, with their global headquarters based in Buttevant. The Irish offshore team currently consists of 17 people based in Cork, with plans to expand the team throughout the various stages of project development. PIC Darragh Kane

The Shelmalere Offshore Wind Farm, with a capacity of up to 1GW, is planned to be developed off the east coast of Ireland in support of the country’s decarbonisation plans.

The offshore wind farm will be developed by a joint venture of Irish renewable energy developer DP Energy and Spain-headquartered Iberdrola.

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The joint venture aims to develop a 3GW pipeline of offshore wind projects in Ireland.

Besides Shelmalere, the portfolio will include the Inis Ealga Marine Energy Park, and the Clarus Offshore Wind Farm.

As of June 2022, Shelmalere is in an early stage of development. In November 2020, the developers submitted a Foreshore Licence Application to the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (DoHLGH) to investigate the area.

A public consultation was held in 2021.

The project needs to secure Maritime Area Consent (MAC) and planning consent, before commencing construction works.

The construction is expected to commence in 2028 and the wind farm is slated to become operational in 2030.

Once operational, the wind farm would supply green power to up to 1 million Irish homes per year.

Shelmalere Offshore Wind Farm Location

The Shelmalere Offshore Wind Farm will be located off the coasts of Wicklow and Wexford in Ireland.

According to the Environmental Impact Assessment Report (EIAR) Scoping Report published in June 2022, three key infrastructure zones for the Shelmalere Offshore Wind Farm have been identified.

This will include a Potential Turbine Array Infrastructure Zone, a Potential Export Cable Corridor Infrastructure Zone, and a Potential Onshore Infrastructure Zone.

The Potential Turbine Array Infrastructure Zone will be located completely within 12 nautical miles off the coast of Ireland.

The Potential Turbine Array Infrastructure Zone and the Potential Export Cable Corridor Infrastructure Zone will cover an area of approximately 637km2.

The Potential Onshore Infrastructure Zone will cover an area of approximately 1,043km2.

Shelmalere Wind Farm Offshore Infrastructure

The proposed offshore elements for the wind farm will include 67 wind turbine generators (WTGs) supported by tower structures and foundations, an offshore platform to support an offshore substation and an accommodation unit, subsea inter-array and inter-array cables, three subsea export cables, and an associated cable landfall(s).

The WTGs have been proposed to be installed within the Potential Turbine Array Infrastructure Zone. Each WTG, with an estimated rotor diameter of 236m, will have a production capacity of 15MW.

The WTGs, which will be connected by intra-array cables, will be installed on fixed bottom foundations.

Subsequently, the 66kV or higher inter-array cables will be linked to the offshore substation.

The offshore substation will have transformers, electrical equipment and potentially accommodation facilities.

Three subsea export cables will connect the wind farm array to the shore. The export cables will comprise three, three-core 220kV cables with an estimated offshore length of 44km.

The export cables will be connected to the onshore cables within the Transition Joint Bay(s) (TJBs).

Additional structures such as long-term metocean (FLiDAR) buoy and long-term navigation buoys/lights and related moorings may be required within the Potential Turbine Array Infrastructure Zone and Potential Export Cable Corridor Infrastructure Zone.

Shelmalere Onshore Infrastructure Details

The proposed onshore infrastructure of the project includes cable landfall infrastructure, underground grid connection cabling and associated ancillary infrastructure, onshore substation and grid connection works, and temporary construction compounds.

The wind farm will transfer power via export cables onshore at one or more cable landfall infrastructure location (s).

From the landfall location at the TJB(s), the onshore underground grid connection cabling will begin. The grid connection cabling will consist of underground cables and will involve the installation of ducting, joint bays, and associated ancillary infrastructure.

The onshore substation of the project will be developed within the Potential Onshore Infrastructure Zone. The proposed Point of Location (PoC) will be located within the same zone and will be developed after consultation with state-owned electric power transmission operator EirGrid.

The most probable location will be either of the three existing 220/110kV network substations at Lodgewood, Arklow, Great Island or a point along an overhead existing line within the onshore zone.

A Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) is also planned to be constructed to store electricity and release it at appropriate times.

Key Contractors Involved

The Environmental Impact Assessment Report (EIAR) for the offshore wind project was led by Fehily Timoney and Company.

Fehily Timoney and Company worked with Intertek and MarineSpace to deliver the report.

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