UK, Ireland Seal Renewable Electricity Trade Deal
The UK and the Republic of Ireland have signed a key agreement that will enable the two countries to trade renewable power with each other by 2020.
Following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Dublin, the two governments plan to carry out detailed analysis of how Irish renewable energy resources, onshore and offshore, might be developed to the mutual benefit of Ireland and the United Kingdom. And if the analysis turns up positive results, a new firm inter-governmental agreement would follow in 2014.
The agreement could see 3GW of new wind projects constructed on Irish soil, with all projects selected via competitive tender.
Ireland, which has led the way in wind energy generation, hopes to be able to offload some of its surplus power to the energy-hungry UK market, while the UK hopes that Irish-generated power can help it meet its renewable energy targets. “Ireland has the potential to generate far more wind energy than we could consume domestically,” said Pat Rabbitte.
“The opportunity to export this green power presents an opportunity for employment growth and export earnings which we must seize if we can.”
