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Wind Power

Thursday
16 Jan 2025

Households to Save €600M a Year Due to Wind Energy Transition

16 Jan 2025  by independent   
Wind energy companies say they have saved Irish customers €840 million on their electricity bills but people only ever hear about the costs of going green.

Wind Energy Ireland (WEI) says the savings, made since 2000, were due to declining reliance on costly fossil fuel imports over that time.

The industry body calculates future savings, if renewables grow as planned, will jump to €610m a year by 2030 and continue at that level or above every year after.

The figures are in a report commissioned by WEI as it seeks to ensure public and political support for the continued growth of wind projects.

Under the Climate Action Plan, the aim is to have 80pc of the country’s electricity generated by renewables by 2030 but planning delays are putting that target at risk.

The newly formed government yesterday recommitted to that target and pledged to tackle delays.

As WEI meets in Dublin today for the start of a two-day conference, its chief executive, Noel Cunniffe, said consumers often only heard about the difficulties associated with rolling out renewables.

Analysis commissioned by WEI from consultants, Baringa, attempts to show the positives.

The Good For Your Pocket report calculates the cost savings to consumers that have come and will come from replacing gas and oil-fired electricity with renewables, even accounting for the costs of required new grid infrastructure.

"This is a fundamental piece of work that we believe needs to be talked about more - the benefits of what renewable energy is bringing to electricity consumers,” Mr Cunniffe said.

“A lot of the focus has been on costs in recent years and it’s nice to see the alternative viewpoint.”

Electricity bills soared in recent years, mainly because much of the country’s electricity is generated by burning gas and gas prices became exorbitant in the supply crisis that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Mr Cunniffe said bills would have been even higher if it had not been for wind power.

“When our electricity bills are among the highest in Europe it can be hard for families or small businesses, struggling to pay their bills, to feel the benefit of these savings,” he said.

“The reality is our bills will remain too high for exactly as long as we choose – and it is a choice – to maintain our dependency on imported gas.”

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