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Displaying items by tag: Dublin Bay Sailing Club

National Yacht Club RS Aero sailor Noel Butler was the winner of Tuesday night's PY class dinghy race. RS Aero sailors also took second an third places with Royal St. George's Brendan Foley second followed by Sarah Dwyer. 

Isolde was the B211 One Design race winner in the keelboat classes with Billy Whizz second and Plan B in third.

Results summary below

DBSC Results for 13/07/2021

Flying 15: 1. A Mere Triffle, 2. Perfect Ten

Sportsboat: 1. Jeorge V, 2. Jheetah, 3. Rebel

Shipman: 1. Poppy, 2. Bluefin

B211 One Design: 1. Isolde, 2. Billy Whizz, 3. Plan B

B211 Echo: 1. Isolde, 2. Plan B, 3. Beeswing

PY Class: 1. Noel Butler 2. Brendan Foley, 3. Sarah Dwyer

IDRA 14: 1. Dart, 2. Dunmoanin, 3. Chaos

Fireball: 1. Frank Miller, 2. Owen Sinnott, 3. Louise McKenna

Laser Standard: 1. Chris Arrowsmith, 2. Justin Maguire, 3. Gavan Murphy

Laser Radial: 1. Hugh O'Connor, 2. Marco Sorgassi, 3. Owen Laverty

Combined Cruisers Echo: 1. Jalapeno, 2. Ruth, 3. Windjammer

Published in DBSC

In anticipation of a weekend of one design action on the Bay, there was a full turnout of 10 boats in the Beneteau 31.7 Class ahead of the class national championships for Thursday's Dublin Bay Sailing Club race.

Chris Johnston's Prospect from the National Yacht Club was the winner of the 31.7 one-design race with clubmate Levante (John Power) second and Royal St. George's Michael Blaney's After You Too in third place.

All but one boat competed in each of the Cruiser 4, Ruffian, Beneteau 211 and Combined Squib & Mermaid Classes.

Overall there was an excellent turnout of 130 boats for another light-air evening on the bay. 

Top three results below

DBSC Results for 01/07/2021

Cruiser 0 IRC: 1. Rockabill VI, 2. Tsunami, 3. Lively Lady

Cruiser 0 Echo: 1. Lively Lady, 2. Rockabill VI, 3. Tsunami

Cruiser 1 IRC: 1. White Mischief, 2. Something Else, 3. Juggerknot 2

Cruiser 1 Echo: 1. Black Velvet, 2. Jump the Gun, 3. Dear Prudence

Cruiser 1 J109: 1. White Mischief, 2. Something Else, 3. Dear Prudence

31.7 One Design: 1. Prospect, 2. Levante, 3. After You Too

31.7 Echo: 1. Kalamar, 2. Levante, 3. Bluefin Two

Cruiser 2 IRC: 1. Windjammer, 2. Peridot, 3. Ruthless

Cruiser 2 Echo: 1. Windjammer, 2. Gwili II, 3. Ruthless

Cruiser 2 Sigma 33: 1. Gwili II, 2. Leeuwin, 3. Boojum

Cruiser 3 IRC: 1. Starlet, 2. Cartoon, 3. Eleint

Cruiser 3 Echo: 1. Starlet, 2. Cartoon, 3. Eleint

Cruiser 4 NS-IRC: 1. Boomerang, 2. Antix, 3. RunAway

Cruiser 4 Echo: 1. Boomerang, 2. Antix, 3. RunAway

Cruiser 5A NS-IRC: 1. Persistance, 2. Prima Luce, 3. The Great Escape

Cruiser 5A Echo: 1. Persistance, 2. Shearwater, 3. Edenpark

Cruiser 5B Echo: 1. Setanta, 2. Gung Ho, 3. Sweet Martini

SB20: 1. Ted, 2. venuesworld.com, 3. Carpe Diem

Flying 15: 1. Shane MacCarthy, 2. FFuZZy, 3. Enfant de Marie

Sportsboat VPRS: 1. Jester, 2. Jheetah, 3. Jeorge V

Sportsboat: 1. George 6, 2. Jester, 3. George 2

Ruffian: 1. Shannagh, 2. Bandit, 3. Ruffles

Shipman: 1. Jo Slim 5, 2. Viking, 3. Twocan

B211 One Design: 1. Small Wonder, 2. Beeswing, 3. Isolde

B211 Echo: 1. Isolde, 2. Betty B, 3. Small Wonder

Glen: 1. Glenluce, 2. GlenDun, 3. Glenroan

Squib/MermaidPY: 1. Jill, 2. Lively Lady, 3. Periquin

Published in DBSC

On the eve of the Beneteau 211 One Design national championships at the Royal Irish Yacht Club at Dun Laoghaire this weekend, Billy Whizz (James Conboy Fischer) was the winner of Tuesday night's DBSC race. Second was Pat Shannon's Beeswing and third was Plan B (Kieran Kingston and Vincent Mulvey).

55 boats across all DBSC fleets enjoyed light airs on a sunny Dublin Bay evening as part of the AIB Summer Series. The top three in each class are below.

Congratulations are due to Declan Traynor, long-time DBSC Patrol chief, who had a successful first outing as Race Officer on the Dinghy Course, under the watchful eye of National Race Officer, Suzanne McGarry, backed up by long-time Dinghy Course stalwarts Ros Bremner, Caroline Liddy, Liz Aylmer, Sharon Moylan & Brendan Dalton.

DBSC Results for 29/06/2021

Race 1

Cruiser 3 Tuesday Echo: 1. Starlet, 2. Maranda, 3. Papytoo

Flying 15: 1. Perfect Ten, 2. A Mere Triffle

Sportsboat: 1. Joyride, 2. Jeorge V, 3. Jay Z

Ruffian: 1. Carmen, 2. Ruff Diamond, 3. Scamp

Shipman: 1. Poppy, 2. Bluefin

B211 One Design: 1. Billy Whizz, 2. Beeswing, 3. Plan B

B211 Echo: 1. Billy Whizz, 2. Beeswing, 3. Plan B

PY Class: 1. B & C O'Neill, 2. Teddy Byrne, 3. Barry Byrne

IDRA 14: 1. Slipway, 2. Dunmoanin, 3. Doody

Fireball: 1. Louise McKenna, 2. Paul ter Horst, 3. Frank Miller

Laser Standard: 1. Chris Arrowsmith, 2. Sean Doyle

Laser Radial: 1. Jacques Murphy, 2. David Cahill, 3. Michael Norman

Race 2

PY Class: 1. Noel Butler, 2. Barry Byrne, 3. Roy Van Maanen

IDRA 14: 1. Slipway, 2. Dunmoanin, 3. Doody

Fireball: 1. Louise McKenna, 2. Frank Miller, 3. Paul ter Horst

Laser Standard: 1. Chris Arrowsmith, 2. Sean Doyle

Laser Radial: 1. Jacques Murphy, 2. Alison Pigot, 3. Michael McCormack

Published in DBSC

Royal Irish Yacht Club J109 White Mischief (Richard and Tim Goodbody) beat Jalapeno (Paul Barrington) and Dear Prudence (Jay Bourke) in a windy DBSC J109 race on Dublin Bay last night.

The sister ships were beaten overall in IRC One by rival XP34 Bon Exemple. The Goodbody's took second in IRC with Andrew Algeo's J99, Juggerknot 2, third.

Dublin Bay J109 interests are being well represented on the South Coast this week where DBSC regular Something Else (John and Brian Hall) of the National Yacht Club lying second after four races sailed at the Sovereign's Cup in Kinsale.

104 boats turned out across all DBSC classes for the breezy Thursday night race.

In the one-design divisions, the big Flying Fifteen fleet was won by Rodriguez. FFuZZy was second with Perfect Ten third.

Heading out to a DBSC Green fleet start, Flying fifteen captain Neil Colin is captured with Sail Training Vessel Brian Boru Photo: Brian Buggy/BanditHeading out to a DBSC Green fleet start, Flying fifteen captain Neil Colin is captured with Sail Training Vessel Brian Boru Photo: Brian Buggy/Bandit

The top three in each class are below:

DBSC Results for 24/06/2021

Cruiser 1 IRC: 1. Bon Exemple, 2. White Mischief, 3. Juggerknot 2

Cruiser 1 Echo: 1. Bon Exemple, 2. White Mischief, 3. Juggerknot 2

Cruiser 1 J109: 1. White Mischief, 2. Jalapeno, 3. Dear Prudence

31.7 One Design: 1. Levante, 2. After You Too, 3. Bluefin Two

31.7 Echo: 1. Levante, 2. Bluefin Two, 3. Fiddly Bits

Cruiser 2 IRC: 1. Leeuwin, 2. Windjammer, 3. Ruthless

Cruiser 2 Echo: 1. Boojum, 2. Leeuwin, 3. Springer

Cruiser 2 Sigma 33: 1. Leeuwin, 2. Boojum, 3. Springer

Cruiser 3 IRC: 1. Starlet, 2. Maranda, 3. Eleint

Cruiser 3 Echo: 1. Cartoon, 2. Saki, 3. Starlet

Cruiser 4 NS-IRC: 1. RunAway

Cruiser 4 Echo: 1. Antix, 2. RunAway

Cruiser 5A NS-IRC: 1. Act Two, 2. Playtime, 3. The Great Escape

Cruiser 5A Echo: 1. Act Two, 2. The Great Escape, 3. Playtime

Cruiser 5B Echo: 1. Setanta

SB20: 1. Ted, 2. Bad/Kilcullen, 3. venuesworld.com

Flying 15: 1. Rodriguez, 2. FFuZZy, 3. Perfect Ten

Sportsboat VPRS: 1. Jester, 2. Jheetah

Sportsboat: 1. Jester, 2. George 2, 3. RIYC 1

Dragon: 1. Sir Ossis o'the River, 2. Phantom, 3. ZinZan

Ruffian: 1. Shannagh, 2. Bandit, 3. Carmen

Shipman: 1. Jo Slim 5, 2. Twocan, 3. Invader

B211 One Design: 1. Chinook, 2. Small Wonder, 3. Beeswing

B211 Echo: 1. Small Wonder, 2. Beeswing, 3. Chinook

Glen: 1. GlenDun, 2. Glenluce, 3. Glenroan

Published in DBSC

Royal St. George's Theo Lyttle won Dublin Bay Sailing Club's (DBSC) Tuesday night Laser standard race at Dun Laoghaire from club mate Ross O'Leary. Damian Moloney was third.

The Fireball class was won by Royal St. George's Louise McKenna with DMYC's Frank Miller second. 

Top three in all competing DBSC classes are below

DBSC Results for 22/06/2021

Cruiser 3 Tuesday Echo: 1. Grasshopper 2, 2. Pamafe, 3. Papytoo

Flying 15: 1. A Mere Triffle, 2. Perfect Ten

Ruffian: 1. Ruff Diamond, 2. Bandit, 3. Scamp

Shipman: 1. Bluefin, 2. Poppy

B211 One Design: 1. Billy Whizz, 2. Isolde, 3. Plan B

B211 Echo: 1. Isolde, 2. Billy Whizz, 3. Plan B

PY Class: 1. Noel Butler, 2. Brendan Foley, 3. Brian Sweeney

IDRA 14: 1. Dart, 2. Chaos, 3. Dunmoanin

Fireball: 1. Louise McKenna, 2. Frank Miller, 3. Paul ter Horst

Laser Standard: 1. Theo Lyttle, 2. Ross O'Leary, 3. Damian Maloney

Laser Radial: 1. Hugh O'Connor, 2. Sean Craig, 3. Brenda Maguire

Dart,
Published in DBSC

The Royal Irish J109 White Mischief (Richard and Tim Goodbody) was the Cruiser 1 IRC winner in Saturday's DBSC race on Dublin Bay.

There was a 125 boat turnout across all classes for the AIB Summer Series, the country's biggest sailing series.

Second, in IRC 1, was the Royal Irish's XP33 Bon Exemple. The National Yacht Club J109 Jalapeno (Paul Barrington) was third.

Saturday's race marked the final DBSC on the water tribute to esteemed member, the late Carmel Winkelmann who passed away last week. Afloat tribute here

In the one-design classes, Ken Dumpleton was the Flying Fifteen class winner in Hera. 

The top three results across all classes are below:

(Above and below) the DBSC green fleet tribute to the late DBSC Race Official Carmel Winkelmann(Above and below) the DBSC green fleet tribute to the late DBSC Race Official Carmel Winkelmann

(Above and below) the DBSC green fleet tribute to the late DBSC Race Official Carmel Winkelmann

DBSC Results for 19/06/2021


Race 1

Cruiser 0 IRC: 1. Rockabill VI, 2. Tsunami, 3. Lively Lady

Cruiser 0 Echo: 1. Tsunami, 2. Rockabill VI, 3. Lively Lady

Cruiser 1 IRC: 1. White Mischief, 2. Bon Exemple, 3. Jalapeno

Cruiser 1 Echo: 1. Indecision, 2. White Mischief, 3. Raptor

Cruiser 1 J109: 1. White Mischief, 2. Jalapeno, 3. Chimaera

31.7 One Design: 1. Attitude, 2. Prospect, 3. Bluefin Two

31.7 Echo: 1. Bluefin Two, 2. Kernach, 3. Attitude

Cruiser 2 IRC: 1. Windjammer, 2. Peridot, 3. Leeuwin

Cruiser 2 Echo: 1. Springer, 2. Windjammer, 3. Leeuwin

Cruiser 2 Sigma 33: 1. Leeuwin, 2. Gwili II, 3. Springer

Cruiser 3 IRC: 1. Starlet, 2. Krypton, 3. Maranda

Cruiser 3 Echo: 1. Ceol na Mara, 2. Pamafe, 3. Starlet

Cruiser 4 NS-IRC: 1. Boomerang, 2. RunAway

Cruiser 4 Echo: 1. Boomerang, 2. RunAway

Cruiser 5 NS-IRC: 1. Playtime, 2. Gung Ho, 3. Persistance

Cruiser 5 Echo: 1. Playtime, 2. Shearwater, 3. Katienua

SB20: 1. Ted, 2. So Blue, 3. Carpe Diem

Flying 15: 1. Phoenix, 2. Hera, 3. Glass Half Full

Sportsboat VPRS: 1. Jawesome III, 2. Jitterbug, 3. Jambiya

Sportsboat: 1. Jawesome III, 2. Jitterbug, 3. George 2

Dragon: 1. ZinZan, 2. Phantom

Ruffian: 1. Bandit, 2. Ruffrider, 3. Icicle

Shipman: 1. Curraglass, 2. Jo Slim 5, 3. Poppy

B211 One Design: 1. Ventuno, 2. Beeswing, 3. Chinook

B211 Echo: 1. Ventuno, 2. Beeswing, 3. Small Wonder

Glen: 1. Glenluce, 2. Glenroan, 3. GlenDun

Squib/Mermaid: 1. Lively Lady, 2. Jill, 3. Aideen

PY Class: 1. Noel Butler, 2. Brendan Foley, 3. Brian Sweeney

Fireball: 1. Owen Sinnott, 2. Paul ter Horst

Laser Standard: 1. Gavan Murphy, 2. Robbie Walker

Laser Radial: 1. Hugh O'Connor, 2. Marc Coakley, 3. Sean Craig

Race 2

SB20: 1. Carpe Diem, 2. Ted, 3. venuesworld.com

Flying 15: 1. Hera, 2. Phoenix, 3. Ignis Caput II

Sportsboat VPRS: 1. Jawesome III, 2. Jitterbug, 3. Jambiya

Sportsboat: 1. Jawesome III, 2. Jitterbug, 3. Jambiya

Dragon: 1. Phantom, 2. ZinZan

Ruffian: 1. Ruffles, 2. Ripples, 3. Bandit

B211 One Design: 1. Yikes, 2. Small Wonder, 3. Chinook

B211 Echo: 1. Small Wonder, 2. Chinook, 3. Billy Whizz

Squib/Mermaid: 1. Lively Lady, 2. Jill, 3. Aideen

PY Class: 1. Brendan Foley, 2. Noel Butler, 3. Brian Sweeney

Fireball: 1. Owen Sinnott, 2. Paul ter Horst

Laser Standard: 1. Gavan Murphy, 2. Robbie Walker

Laser Radial: 1. Sean Craig, 2. Hugh O'Connor, 3. Sophie Kilmartin

Published in DBSC

Tony Fox's IMX 38 Gringo from the National Yacht Club beat club mates John and Brian Hall's J109 Something Else in the Cruisers One IRC division of Dublin Bay Sailing Club's Saturday racing.

Racing for classes in Seapoint Bay in the DBSC AIB sponsored Summer Series was subjected to variable westerlies for the opening races before a more solid breeze from 170 degrees came through for the second race.

Jim McCann's Mustang 30 Peridot from the Royal Irish Yacht Club beat two Sigma 33s for the top spot in class two IRC.

In the One Design classes,  DMYC's Enfant de Marie (Ben Mulligan) was the winner of the first race with Phoenix (John Lavery) of the National Yacht Club the second race winner.

The top three results in each DBSC class are below

DBSC Results for 12/06/2021

Race 1

Cruiser 1 IRC: 1. Gringo, 2. Something Else, 3. Chimaera

Cruiser 1 Echo: 1. Gringo, 2. Powder Monkey, 3. Raptor

Cruiser 1 J109: 1. Something Else, 2. Chimaera, 3. Powder Monkey

31.7 One Design: 1. Attitude, 2. Kalamar, 3. Kernach

31.7 Echo: 1. Kalamar, 2. Kernach, 3. Attitude

Cruiser 2 IRC: 1. Peridot, 2. Leeuwin, 3. Rupert

Cruiser 2 Echo: 1. Leeuwin, 2. Rupert, 3. Peridot

Cruiser 2 Sigma 33: 1. Leeuwin, 2. Rupert, 3. Gwili II

Cruiser 3 IRC: 1. Maranda, 2. Starlet

Cruiser 3 Echo: 1. Maranda, 2. Papytoo, 3. Wynward

Cruiser 5 NS-IRC: 1. The Great Escape, 2. Gung Ho, 3. Playtime

Cruiser 5 Echo: 1. Sweet Martini, 2. The Great Escape, 3. Playtime

SB20: 1. venuesworld.com, 2. Ted, 3. So Blue

Flying 15: 1. Enfant de Marie, 2. Flyer, 3. Phoenix

Sportsboat: 1. Jambiya, 2. Joyride, 3. Jay Z

Sportsboat VPRS: 1. Jambiya, 2. Joyride, 3. Jawesome III

Shipman: 1. Curraglass, 2. Viking, 3. Jo Slim 5

Glen: 1. Glenroan, 2. GlenDun

PY Class: 1. Brendan Foley, 2. Michael McCambridge

IDRA 14: 1. Dunmoanin, 2. Chaos

Fireball: 1. Owen Sinnott, 2. Paul ter Horst

Race 2

SB20: 1. Ted, 2. Bad/Kilcullen, 3. Rubadubdub

Flying 15: 1. Phoenix, 2. Rodriguez, 3. Fflagella

Sportsboat: 1=. George 6, 1=. Jawesome III, 3. Jambiya

Sportsboat VPRS: 1. Jawesome III, 2. Jambiya, 3. Joyride

Ruffian: 1. Bandit, 2. Ripples, 3. Ruffles

B211 One Design: 1. Yikes, 2. Chinook, 3. Beeswing

B211 Echo: 1. Beeswing, 2. Ventuno, 3. Chinook

Squib/Mermaid: 1. Lively Lady, 2. Periquin, 3. Allsorts

PY Class: 1. Brendan Foley, 2. Michael McCambridge

IDRA 14: 1. Chaos, 2. Dunmoanin

Fireball: 1. Owen Sinnott, 2. Paul ter Horst

Race 3

PY Class: 1. Brendan Foley, 2. Michael McCambridge

IDRA 14: 1. Chaos, 2. Dunmoanin

Fireball: 1. Owen Sinnott, 2. Paul ter Horst

Published in DBSC

102 yachts started on a windy evening on Dublin Bay last night for the first Thursday race proper of the 2021 DBSC summer season.

Tim and Richard Goodbody's J109, White Mischief from the Royal Irish Yacht Club were Cruiser One winners in both IRC and ECHO. Chris Johnston's National Yacht Club Prospect was the Beneteau 31.7 winner 

Royal St. George's Windjammer (​Lindsey J Casey & Denis Power) won Class Two in IRC but Conor Ronan's Corby 26, Ruthless won on ECHO. 

Full results below.  

DBSC Results for 10/06/2021

Cruiser 1 IRC: 1. White Mischief, 2. Something Else, 3. Jalapeno

Cruiser 1 Echo: 1. Something Else, 2. White Mischief, 3. Jalapeno

Cruiser 1 J109: 1. White Mischief, 2. Something Else, 3. Jalapeno

31.7 One Design: 1. Prospect, 2. Attitude, 3. After You Too

31.7 Echo: 1. Indigo, 2. Attitude, 3. Bluefin Two

Cruiser 2 IRC: 1. Windjammer, 2. Ruthless, 3. Rupert

Cruiser 2 Echo: 1. Ruthless, 2. Windjammer, 3. Boojum

Cruiser 2 Sigma 33: 1. Boojum, 2. Rupert

Cruiser 3 IRC: 1. Starlet, 2. Maranda, 3. Eleint

Cruiser 3 Echo: 1. Grasshopper 2, 2. Starlet, 3. Saki

Cruiser 4 NS-IRC: 1. Boomerang, 2. Playtime

Cruiser 4 Echo: 1. Boomerang, 2. Antix, 3. Playtime

Cruiser 5A NS-IRC: 1. Prima Luce, 2. Act Two, 3. Persistance, 1. Sweet

Cruiser 5A Echo: 1. Aurora, 2. Prima Luce, 3. Act Two

Cruiser 5B Echo: 1. Sweet Martini, 2. Gung Ho, 3. Fortitudine

SB20: 1. Ted, 2. So Blue, 3. venuesworld.com

Flying 15: 1. Shane MacCarthy, 2. Enfant de Marie, 3. Glass Half Full

Sportsboat: 1. Jester, 2. Jheetah, 3. Jitterbug

Sportsboat: 1. Jester, 2. Jheetah, 3. Jitterbug

Ruffian: 1. Bandit, 2. Shannagh, 3. Ruffles

Shipman: 1. Curraglass, 2. Twocan, 3. Jo Slim 5

B211 One Design: 1. Chinook, 2. Yikes, 3. Billy Whizz

B211 Echo: 1. Chinook, 2. Isolde, 3. Small Wonder

Squib/Mermaid: 1. Jill, 2=. Periquin, 2=. Aideen

Published in DBSC

Damian Moloney won both of Tuesday night's Dublin Bay Sailing Club (DBSC) in-harbour Laser dinghy races, the first of the 2021 season.

Ten-knot southerly winds greeted the DBSC fleet that resumed Dun Laoghaire competition following almost a month of training races in line with COVID-19 protocols.

Frank Miller was the winner of both Fireball races. Likewise, Brendan Foley, sailing an RS Aero, won both of the PY races.

In the Radial class, Conor Clancy and Sean Craig took a win apiece.

DBSC Results for 08/06/2021

Race 1

Cruiser 3 Tuesday Echo: 1. Maranda, 2. Papytoo, 3. Saki

Flying 15: 1. Shane MacCarthy, 2. Perfect Ten

Ruffian: 1. Ruff Diamond, 2. Carmen

Shipman: 1. Poppy, 2. Bluefin

PY Class: 1. Brendan Foley, 2. Noel Butler, 3. Barry Byrne

Fireball: 1. Frank Miller, 2. Louise McKenna, 3. Owen Sinnott

Laser Standard: 1. Damian Maloney, 2. Chris Arrowsmith, 3. Gary O'Hare

Laser Radial: 1. Conor Clancy, 2. Hugh O'Connor, 3. Shirley Gilmore

Race 2

PY Class: 1. Brendan Foley, 2. Noel Butler, 3. Barry Byrne

Fireball: 1. Frank Miller, 2. Louise McKenna, 3. Owen Sinnott

Laser Standard: 1. Damian Maloney, 2. Gary O'Hare, 3. Theo Lyttle

Laser Radial: 1. Sean Craig, 2. Hugh O'Connor, 3. David Cahill

Published in DBSC

With Dublin Bay Sailing Club's final week of Pandemic-restricted Training Races currently underway (restrictions are lifted on Monday, June 7th), the always-numerous Flying Fifteen class have been threatening to fly too high, and may need to have their wings clipped in order to stay within the Irish Sailing limits of not more than 15 boats per class in an approved training fleet.

FF Class Captain Neil Colin has circulated his members today regarding the races on June 3rd and 5th, and states: “We will run the WhatsApp Roll Call, and if we exceed the quota, I will be asking some to step back on a Random Selection Basis”.

Published in Flying Fifteen
Page 8 of 60

Ireland's Offshore Renewable Energy

Because of Ireland's location at the Atlantic edge of the EU, it has more offshore energy potential than most other countries in Europe. The conditions are suitable for the development of the full range of current offshore renewable energy technologies.

Offshore Renewable Energy FAQs

Offshore renewable energy draws on the natural energy provided by wind, wave and tide to convert it into electricity for industry and domestic consumption.

Offshore wind is the most advanced technology, using fixed wind turbines in coastal areas, while floating wind is a developing technology more suited to deeper water. In 2018, offshore wind provided a tiny fraction of global electricity supply, but it is set to expand strongly in the coming decades into a USD 1 trillion business, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). It says that turbines are growing in size and in power capacity, which in turn is "delivering major performance and cost improvements for offshore wind farms".

The global offshore wind market grew nearly 30% per year between 2010 and 2018, according to the IEA, due to rapid technology improvements, It calculated that about 150 new offshore wind projects are in active development around the world. Europe in particular has fostered the technology's development, led by Britain, Germany and Denmark, but China added more capacity than any other country in 2018.

A report for the Irish Wind Energy Assocation (IWEA) by the Carbon Trust – a British government-backed limited company established to accelerate Britain's move to a low carbon economy - says there are currently 14 fixed-bottom wind energy projects, four floating wind projects and one project that has yet to choose a technology at some stage of development in Irish waters. Some of these projects are aiming to build before 2030 to contribute to the 5GW target set by the Irish government, and others are expected to build after 2030. These projects have to secure planning permission, obtain a grid connection and also be successful in a competitive auction in the Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (RESS).

The electricity generated by each turbine is collected by an offshore electricity substation located within the wind farm. Seabed cables connect the offshore substation to an onshore substation on the coast. These cables transport the electricity to land from where it will be used to power homes, farms and businesses around Ireland. The offshore developer works with EirGrid, which operates the national grid, to identify how best to do this and where exactly on the grid the project should connect.

The new Marine Planning and Development Management Bill will create a new streamlined system for planning permission for activity or infrastructure in Irish waters or on the seabed, including offshore wind farms. It is due to be published before the end of 2020 and enacted in 2021.

There are a number of companies aiming to develop offshore wind energy off the Irish coast and some of the larger ones would be ESB, SSE Renewables, Energia, Statkraft and RWE.

There are a number of companies aiming to develop offshore wind energy off the Irish coast and some of the larger ones would be ESB, SSE Renewables, Energia, Statkraft and RWE. Is there scope for community involvement in offshore wind? The IWEA says that from the early stages of a project, the wind farm developer "should be engaging with the local community to inform them about the project, answer their questions and listen to their concerns". It says this provides the community with "the opportunity to work with the developer to help shape the final layout and design of the project". Listening to fishing industry concerns, and how fishermen may be affected by survey works, construction and eventual operation of a project is "of particular concern to developers", the IWEA says. It says there will also be a community benefit fund put in place for each project. It says the final details of this will be addressed in the design of the RESS (see below) for offshore wind but it has the potential to be "tens of millions of euro over the 15 years of the RESS contract". The Government is also considering the possibility that communities will be enabled to invest in offshore wind farms though there is "no clarity yet on how this would work", the IWEA says.

Based on current plans, it would amount to around 12 GW of offshore wind energy. However, the IWEA points out that is unlikely that all of the projects planned will be completed. The industry says there is even more significant potential for floating offshore wind off Ireland's west coast and the Programme for Government contains a commitment to develop a long-term plan for at least 30 GW of floating offshore wind in our deeper waters.

There are many different models of turbines. The larger a turbine, the more efficient it is in producing electricity at a good price. In choosing a turbine model the developer will be conscious of this ,but also has to be aware the impact of the turbine on the environment, marine life, biodiversity and visual impact. As a broad rule an offshore wind turbine will have a tip-height of between 165m and 215m tall. However, turbine technology is evolving at a rapid rate with larger more efficient turbines anticipated on the market in the coming years.

 

The Renewable Electricity Support Scheme is designed to support the development of renewable energy projects in Ireland. Under the scheme wind farms and solar farms compete against each other in an auction with the projects which offer power at the lowest price awarded contracts. These contracts provide them with a guaranteed price for their power for 15 years. If they obtain a better price for their electricity on the wholesale market they must return the difference to the consumer.

Yes. The first auction for offshore renewable energy projects is expected to take place in late 2021.

Cost is one difference, and technology is another. Floating wind farm technology is relatively new, but allows use of deeper water. Ireland's 50-metre contour line is the limit for traditional bottom-fixed wind farms, and it is also very close to population centres, which makes visibility of large turbines an issue - hence the attraction of floating structures Do offshore wind farms pose a navigational hazard to shipping? Inshore fishermen do have valid concerns. One of the first steps in identifying a site as a potential location for an offshore wind farm is to identify and assess the level of existing marine activity in the area and this particularly includes shipping. The National Marine Planning Framework aims to create, for the first time, a plan to balance the various kinds of offshore activity with the protection of the Irish marine environment. This is expected to be published before the end of 2020, and will set out clearly where is suitable for offshore renewable energy development and where it is not - due, for example, to shipping movements and safe navigation.

YEnvironmental organisations are concerned about the impact of turbines on bird populations, particularly migrating birds. A Danish scientific study published in 2019 found evidence that larger birds were tending to avoid turbine blades, but said it didn't have sufficient evidence for smaller birds – and cautioned that the cumulative effect of farms could still have an impact on bird movements. A full environmental impact assessment has to be carried out before a developer can apply for planning permission to develop an offshore wind farm. This would include desk-based studies as well as extensive surveys of the population and movements of birds and marine mammals, as well as fish and seabed habitats. If a potential environmental impact is identified the developer must, as part of the planning application, show how the project will be designed in such a way as to avoid the impact or to mitigate against it.

A typical 500 MW offshore wind farm would require an operations and maintenance base which would be on the nearby coast. Such a project would generally create between 80-100 fulltime jobs, according to the IWEA. There would also be a substantial increase to in-direct employment and associated socio-economic benefit to the surrounding area where the operation and maintenance hub is located.

The recent Carbon Trust report for the IWEA, entitled Harnessing our potential, identified significant skills shortages for offshore wind in Ireland across the areas of engineering financial services and logistics. The IWEA says that as Ireland is a relatively new entrant to the offshore wind market, there are "opportunities to develop and implement strategies to address the skills shortages for delivering offshore wind and for Ireland to be a net exporter of human capital and skills to the highly competitive global offshore wind supply chain". Offshore wind requires a diverse workforce with jobs in both transferable (for example from the oil and gas sector) and specialist disciplines across apprenticeships and higher education. IWEA have a training network called the Green Tech Skillnet that facilitates training and networking opportunities in the renewable energy sector.

It is expected that developing the 3.5 GW of offshore wind energy identified in the Government's Climate Action Plan would create around 2,500 jobs in construction and development and around 700 permanent operations and maintenance jobs. The Programme for Government published in 2020 has an enhanced target of 5 GW of offshore wind which would create even more employment. The industry says that in the initial stages, the development of offshore wind energy would create employment in conducting environmental surveys, community engagement and development applications for planning. As a site moves to construction, people with backgrounds in various types of engineering, marine construction and marine transport would be recruited. Once the site is up and running , a project requires a team of turbine technicians, engineers and administrators to ensure the wind farm is fully and properly maintained, as well as crew for the crew transfer vessels transporting workers from shore to the turbines.

The IEA says that today's offshore wind market "doesn't even come close to tapping the full potential – with high-quality resources available in most major markets". It estimates that offshore wind has the potential to generate more than 420 000 Terawatt hours per year (TWh/yr) worldwide – as in more than 18 times the current global electricity demand. One Terawatt is 114 megawatts, and to put it in context, Scotland it has a population a little over 5 million and requires 25 TWh/yr of electrical energy.

Not as advanced as wind, with anchoring a big challenge – given that the most effective wave energy has to be in the most energetic locations, such as the Irish west coast. Britain, Ireland and Portugal are regarded as most advanced in developing wave energy technology. The prize is significant, the industry says, as there are forecasts that varying between 4000TWh/yr to 29500TWh/yr. Europe consumes around 3000TWh/year.

The industry has two main umbrella organisations – the Irish Wind Energy Association, which represents both onshore and offshore wind, and the Marine Renewables Industry Association, which focuses on all types of renewable in the marine environment.

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