Inshore fishermen working grounds in Galway Bay have expressed concern about the impact of geotechnical works for one of the Irish west coast’s first offshore wind farms.
The Sceirde Rocks fixed bottom offshore wind farm in north Galway Bay is a proposed 450 MW output project, which is one of seven “phase one” wind farms.
The seven projects – six in the Irish Sea and Sceirdre Rocks on the west coast - received marine area consents (MACs) from Minister for Environment and Climate Action Eamon Ryan in December 2022.
Projects which have been granted a MAC are permitted to apply for development permission and secure a route to market within set timeframes.
The seven phase one projects can also participate in the Irish government’s offshore renewable energy support scheme 1, as in the first auction for offshore wind under Ireland’s Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (RESS).
The Sceirde Rocks project, or Fuinneamh Sceirde Teoranta, was an Irish project which was acquired by the Green Investment Group (GIG) in September 2021.
It is now managed by Corio Generation, which was established as a specialist offshore wind business by GIG in April 2022.
The Sceirde wind farm is being developed as a joint venture with the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, with a target completion date of 2030.
The project developers compensated local fishermen in the Carna, Ballyconneely and Roundstone areas for a geophysical survey last year, although one local fisherman sought a court order to ensure his fishing was not interfered with.
The project now wants to undertake geotechnical surveys, and Connemara fishermen are concerned about the impact of what they describe as more invasive work on fish stocks, in addition to disruption to fishing activity.
They say they have been told the geotechnical survey work would require 500m exclusion zones to accommodate jack-up drilling gear.
The area around the Sceirde Rocks in north Galway Bay is known as a prime lobster ground. Conservation of lobsters through v-notching has been actively supported.
Public consultation closed in late February for foreshore license applications lodged by the company in relation to site investigation activities for the wind farm array area.
The company says the aim of the site investigations is to determine geotechnical, geophysical, met ocean, wind resource and benthic characteristics.
The company is also seeking a foreshore license for investigations relating to the required offshore export cable route for the wind farm.
In its application it says that there are two potential offshore export cable corridors – one making a landfall in Galway Bay, and the second making a landfall further south along the coast near Milltown Malbay and Doonbeg in Co Clare.
It says following confirmation of the Sceirde Rocks offshore wind farm grid connection point, it intends to survey only one chosen export cable corridor.
"However, it is possible that each type of site investigation may be undertaken simultaneously (along both cable corridors)," it says.
The company says it has been consulting with local fishermen, and will continue to do so. The foreshore license applications are with the Department of Housing, which handles MACs.