Norwegian independent power producer (IPP) Statkraft has started commercial operations at two solar PV projects in the Republic of Ireland, with a combined capacity of 206MW.
The portfolio consists of the 174MW Clonfad project in Westmeath, central Ireland, and the 32MW Irishtown project on the edge of Dublin. Statkraft noted that both projects had started commercial operations “in recent weeks,” and now pushes the company’s operational solar capacity in the country to over 500MW.
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“The energisation of Clonfad and Irishtown means we have now installed 560MW of solar energy, all contributing to our electricity grid,” said Statkraft Ireland managing director Kevin O’Donovan.
“This represents a positive step in a very turbulent time. With the current geopolitical challenges, we are seeing an ever-increasing need to deliver renewables to ensure safe and secure, domestic energy supplies.”
O’Donovan added that renewables in Ireland ought to be paired with “increased storage and grid stability projects” to ensure security of supply in this environment. Last week, Form Energy announced plans to deploy a 10MW/1,000MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) in Ireland, which it expects to come online in 2029.
The news follows Statkraft’s announcement of plans to scale down its renewable energy investments; in 2024, the company cut its planned solar PV, onshore wind and BESS capacity from 4GW to 2-2.5GW.
However, at the time, Statkraft noted it would focus on renewable energy investments in European markets, and the Republic of Ireland has emerged as a priority for the company; Statkraft’s 560MW of operational solar capacity in the country accounts for just over 40% of the 1.3GW of solar PV capacity currently in operation nationwide.
Ireland has also reached a number of renewable energy milestones in the last year, including generating 753GWh of renewable electricity in the first seven months of 2025. As reported by our sister site Solar Power Portal, this is a record figure and more electricity than was generated by renewables in the whole of 2024. In January, renewable energy accounted for 38.7% of Ireland’s energy mix, although the vast majority of this came from wind power; solar power accounted for just 0.8% of the country’s total electricity generation in January.
