Gaelectric has announced it has been granted planning permission for a wind farm in Co Tyrone that will produce 15 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy.
The Irish renewable energy group said that the £22m wind farm will operate in Inishative, near Pomeroy, Tyrone, and will consist of six turbines – generating enough renewable energy to meet the average electricity consumption of around 8,000 homes.
Critically important
Brendan McGrath, CEO of Gaelectric, said he believes it is critically important that government policies need to place more importance on projects of this ilk and their relevance to the economy, and that the approval for the plant represents an important step for the company.
“Government policy needs to give further weight and importance to economic considerations and the opportunities for economic development that wind power developments present. A focused and proactive approach to economic opportunities is needed to steer the economy – North and South – on a sustainable growth path.”
Well-prepared projects
The company has received planning approval over the years for a number of wind farm sites in counties Tyrone and Antrim and sees them as sustainable, well-prepared and viable projects.
“The Inishative approval is a further important demonstration of policy makers, planners and energy companies working together to harness renewable resources, and an important further step for Gaelectric representing, as it does, our third planning success in Northern Ireland this year,” he added.
The Inishative wind farm development is the latest in a portfolio of renewable energy projects that Gaelectric is progressing in Northern Ireland, which together totals about 200 MW of power generation capacity.
Gaelectric has 25 projects at different stages of development in Ireland, with just more than half of these projects in Northern Ireland.
