Irish Ports must quickly build its own infrastructure and expertise to construct offshore wind farms or will lose many billions’ worth of business to British ports and other foreign firms, industry experts warn.
As Independent.ie writes, a report by renewable energy consultants Carbon Trust finds that not one of 21 ports and harbours in Ireland is capable of anchoring a construction project for offshore wind.
It says the State - potentially alongside private investors - needs to plow €50m to €100m into an east coast port soon to make it capable of serving as a hub for constructing offshore wind farms.
While the 188-page report itself doesn’t pick a favourite, lead author Liam Leahy said the Port of Rosslare (see related story) comes closest currently to “checking all the boxes” needed to compete for this business.
But even Rosslare could require speedy investment in the €50m-€100m range to allow it to compete credibly with UK ports, said Mr Leahy, a Limerick native who is manager of offshore wind for London-based Carbon Trust.
At stake is which firms and locations will gain as an estimated €8.6bn is spent over the coming decade building the first major offshore wind farms off the east and southeast coasts of Ireland.
For much more click here in addition to a report in today's The Irish Times.
