Ireland just became Europe's newest coal-free country
10 months ago
- #renewable-energy
- #climate-change
- #energy-transition
- Ireland has officially ended coal power operations by shutting down its only coal-fired power station, Moneypoint.
- Wind energy now supplies 37% of Ireland's electricity, up from just 1% in the early 2000s.
- Moneypoint will still burn heavy fuel oil during emergencies until 2029 but is transitioning to a renewable energy hub.
- A 17 MW onshore wind farm was built at Moneypoint in 2017, and a multi-billion-euro renewable project, Green Atlantic, was announced in 2021.
- Ireland plans to build 2 GW of new gas power plants, despite aiming for a zero-carbon system.
- 15 European countries have already gone coal-free, with 10 more planning to do so in the next five years.