As an island nation on the edge of Europe, Ireland relies heavily on the maritime transport sector. A significant 90% of Ireland’s traded goods pass through our commercial port network, highlighting the importance of a resilient and efficient industry to enable economic success.
This was reflected in the National Ports Policy (2013) which identified Tier 1 and Tier 2 ports based on throughput and their ability to lead the development of future port capacity.
Whilst port capacity and trade volumes are still as important as ever, perhaps increasingly so post-Brexit, Ireland is now looking to the ports to enable the delivery of its climate targets, through the facilitation of the development, construction and long-term operation and maintenance of offshore wind projects.
Ireland aims to achieve 80% of its electricity generation from renewable sources by 2030 with 5 GW attributable to offshore wind, and a long-term goal of reaching 37GW by 2050. With Ireland’s sea area being seven times that of its land mass, the opportunity is enormous.
However, at present, none of the Irish ports possess the required facilities and capabilities to assist in delivering this ambition. There is also a target to have 2GW of Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) dedicated to the production of hydrogen by 2030 which creates further economic and socio-economic opportunities for the ports’ hinterland and coastal regions through the development of ‘energy hubs’ and a wider green economy.
As Part 1 of the Public Consultation for the Review of the National Ports Policy ended last week, it is timely to consider the importance of ports and the challenges that Ireland must overcome to unlock the huge renewable energy and economic opportunity for Ireland.
Kieran Collins and our Infrastructure team explore how Government can best support Irish ports below.
