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The wind project, which will be completed in 2022, will have the capability to generate enough renewable electricity to supply 20,000 homes per year.
Today (7 August), Facebook and Brookfield Renewable announced plans for a new onshore windfarm in Lisheen, Co Tipperary.
The collaboration is part of a long-term corporate power purchase agreement (CCPA) to produce and supply 100pc renewable energy to Ireland’s national electricity grid.
When the Lisheen III wind project is completed in 2022, it will have a renewable capacity of 28.8MW and the capability to generate enough renewable electricity to supply 20,000 homes each year, saving the equivalent of 32,000 tonnes of CO2 annually.
The new project will be located adjacent to Brookfield Renewable’s existing developments in Lisheen.
Renewable energy for Facebook’s operations
CCPAs are mechanisms that enable large companies to build or help fund off-site renewable energy generation. Facebook and Brookfield Renewable said that today’s announcement shows that large-scale, renewable energy projects can be enabled by corporate buyers in Ireland.
Colin Spain, EMEA energy manager at Facebook, said: “We appreciate this strong collaboration with Brookfield Renewable and we are excited to be part of bringing this new wind project to the grid.
“We hope it will not only support our operations in Ireland and our goal of 100pc renewable energy for all of our global operations, but will encourage all stakeholders to work together to bring additional renewables to the grid via corporate power purchase agreements.”
Brookfield Renewable’s chief commercial officer for UK and Ireland, Ciarán O’Brien, added that the company is “delighted” to extend its relationship with Facebook, which began in 2016.
“Facebook has established itself as a global leader in accelerating the transition toward renewable energy, demonstrating the role that companies can have in adding renewable capacity to the grid and meeting carbon reduction goals,” O’Brien said.
The news comes days after Ireland’s first Renewable Electricity Support Scheme auction, in which contracts were provisionally awarded for 19 new windfarms and 63 solar projects in Ireland.
Updated, 4.50pm, 7 August 2020: A previous version of this article said that the Lisheen windfarm will be offshore. The article was updated to clarify that it is an onshore windfarm.
