Members Energies renouvelables - Développement durable - Environnement
French renewables group plans €1bn of Irish green investments
Neoen, a Paris-listed renewable energy company, has said it hopes to develop a pipeline of green energy projects worth €1bn in Ireland but that the country's planning and regulatory environment would need to change to help it deliver.
Having invested around €100m in Ireland to date, Neoen owns eight wind farms and three solar farms already supplying the Irish grid. Other projects representing around €100m have already been awarded to Neoen via successful tender processes, with work expected to start by the end of the year.
Xavier Barbaro, chairman and chief executive of Neoen, said it ultimately had the ambition to have a portfolio of 30 projects in Ireland that generated one gigawatt of power. This would represent a €1bn investment in the Irish renewables market.
However, Barbaro flagged a need for regulatory and planning changes in the Irish market to help it progress its development plans.
Despite his belief in the need for change, Barbaro said Neoen was “committed” to continuing to invest and do business in Ireland, flagging the significant opportunity across renewables and battery storage in the country. He also pointed out many of the challenges were issues across most markets, with some, including in France, worse than in Ireland.
Neoen, which has a market capitalisation of over €4.15bn, operates in 16 countries across Europe, the Americas and Australia. The Westmeath Enquirer said Neoen recently lodged a planning application with Westmeath County Council to develop an 87-hectare solar farm and a 50MW battery storage facility.
