Displaying items by tag: City of Dublin Steam Packet Company

19th December 2011

Portrait of R.M.S. Leinster Survivor to be Unveiled

#DUBLIN BAY NEWS-Tom Connolly, a survivor from R.M.S. Leinster which was torpedoed off the Kish Bank in 1918, will be remembered when his portrait is unveiled on 31 December.

The unveiling is to take place in the Dun Laoghaire Club, 1 Eblana Avenue, where live music will be the order of the night, starting at 8.30pm. Tickets costs €10 each and can be purchased from the club bar or Costello Jewellers on Cumberland Avenue. Proceeds will be used to provide wheel-chair access to the club.

R.M.S. Leinster was operated by City of Dublin Steam Packet Company (CDSPCo) and on the day of the incident she had 771 passengers (mostly military personnel) and crew on board. Of those 22 were postal sorters from the Dublin Post Office, working in the ships on postal sorting room. The prefix of the vessel, R.M.S. stood for Royal Mail Steamer.

Officially 501 people died, making it both the greatest ever loss of life in the Irish Sea and the highest ever casualty rate on an Irish-owned vessel, though research to date has revealed the names of 529 casualties. To read more click HERE.

Connolly was also a member of the Dun Laoghaire Club and he founded Ireland's first supermarket in Patrick Street, Dun Laoghaire. A model of R.M.S. Leinster was displayed in his supermarket over many years. The model is now in the town's National Maritime Museum of Ireland which is due to re-open in Easter next year, for further information www.mariner.ie

Published in Dublin Bay

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Offshore wind

ESB know the importance of offshore wind in tackling climate change and delivering net zero. Ireland has a unique capability given its prime location to take advantage of the potential of offshore wind. ESB are working hard to develop offshore wind projects for the benefit of everyone across society in Ireland and the UK. This includes ongoing engagement with marine users and local communities so ESB can deliver these significant projects.

Offshore wind will play a major role globally in our fight against climate change. It will help to replace energy generated by burning fossil fuels with that from a clean, safe and secure renewable energy source. Ireland’s geographic location on the exposed edge of the Atlantic presents us with a significant opportunity to generate electricity from wind – both offshore and onshore.

Power from onshore wind farms currently provide over one-third of Ireland’s electricity needs. But, whilst its marine area is many times the size of its landmass, Ireland’s offshore wind potential is only starting to be realised. ESB have a coastline stretching over 3,000km but only one operational offshore wind farm – Arklow Bank, with a capacity of 25 MW. In contrast, Belgium’s coastline is only 63km long, but it has already developed more than 2,000 MW of offshore wind. In Great Britain, with a coastline four times the length of ours, offshore wind generation now equates to over 440 Arklow Banks, with an installed capacity of 11,0000 MW as of late 2021.

The Irish Government's target to install 5,000 MW of offshore wind capacity in our maritime area by 2030 is set out in the Climate Action Plan 2021. It also has the objective to source 80% of Ireland’s electricity needs from renewables by the same year. In line with this, ESB is applying its professional and proven engineering expertise to the challenges set within the Climate Action Plan.

ESB are committed to playing a strong role in developing Ireland’s offshore wind potential for the benefit of the people of Ireland. This will be done in consultation with marine users and local communities, and with due care for the marine environment.