The Irish renewable energy market has “a very stable political landscape,” which has facilitated long-term planning for investors and developers in the country.
This is the opinion of David Maguire, CEO of the BNRG Group, an independent power producer (IPP) headquartered in Dublin, who spoke to PV Tech Premium this week about the Irish renewable investment landscape.
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“We have a very stable political landscape that means that we have consistently stable policy that’s coming out in a very predictable [and] organic manner,” Maguire explained, pointing to a cross-party consensus about the importance of the energy transition that has only helped this sense of security. “We don’t get radical shifts in policy, whether it’s the opposition or the incumbent; all political parties are aligned on a number of aspects to ensure that there is a robust regulatory framework.”
This security, and the growth that it could facilitate in the future, is significant considering that Ireland does not have the largest operational solar portfolio in Europe. The country passed 1GW of grid-scale solar last month, which compares to almost 10GW of such capacity in the UK, but Maguire said that the country’s relatively nascent solar industry has afforded it a “late-mover advantage”, by enabling Irish developers, investors and policymakers to learn from other industries.
“Ireland coming late to solar has meant we’ve had a late-mover advantage, where the policies that have been implemented have been based on best practice from elsewhere in EU member states and the UK, so that’s a positive,” he said.
Read the full interview, including a discussion of the role of battery energy storage systems (BESS) in the Irish market and whether Maguire thinks there is a role for both government auctions and corporate power purchase agreements (PPAs) in the Irish financing space, on PV Tech Premium.
Maguire will be speaking at this month’s Renewables Procurement & Revenue Summit, to be held from 20-21 May in London. Hosted by PV Tech publisher Solar Media, the event will cover PPA design, tackling high energy prices and more; for more information, including the full agenda and ticket options, visit the event website.
