Electricity Supply Board (ESB) officially opened its 75MW/150MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) in Dublin last week (7 February), making it the largest project of its kind in Ireland.
Green Party leader Ryan, who serves as Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications as well as Minister for Transport, attended the event in Poolbeg, Dublin, on 7 February.
The system is Ireland’s largest of its kind to date and went operational in November 2023 ahead of last week’s official opening and photo opportunity with representatives of utility company Electricity Supply Board (ESB) and battery system integrator Fluence.
It is located at Poolbeg Energy Hub, where ESB – around 95% owned by the Irish state with the remaining stake held by its employees – is planning to deploy a combination of clean energy technologies, including offshore wind, hydrogen, and battery storage, over the coming decade.
“Energy storage like this major battery plant at the ESB’s flagship site in Poolbeg will be a core part of Ireland’s new renewable energy transition and will play a key role in balancing our new, homegrown power supply,” Eamon Ryan said.
The minister added that “no electricity system can operate without backup”, but that traditionally this has been provided in Ireland – which shares a grid with its neighbours in Northern Ireland – by fossil fuel generation.
“However, into the future, we can store increasing amounts of wind and solar power in energy storage projects and use it to support the system instead of relying on dirty and expensive coal or gas,” Ryan said.
The fast-responding asset will store energy generated by renewable energy and output it to help balance the grid when required.
This article was taken from our sister site Energy-Storage News. The full story can be read here.
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