Finance has been secured for the development of up to 6,000ac of solar panels by 2025.

The €240m construction equity was secured by Dublin-based Power Capital Renewable Energy and will be used to develop 1.2GW of solar farm projects in Ireland by 2025.

The solar farm developments span several counties. Construction has already begun on 230MW of solar farms, which will be completed by late this year across counties Cork, Wexford, Louth and Meath.

The funding was secured from a consortium which includes Belgian insurance company Ethias and the European Investment Bank.

The solar farms will be supplying electricity directly to technology companies such as Microsoft, while the remainder will be supported under the Government’s Renewable Electricity Support Scheme.

Targets

Ireland has a national target of 5GW of solar energy by 2025, roughly 25,000ac of solar farms.

Speaking on the investment, Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications Eamon Ryan said the new European support for solar investment across Ireland is a vote of confidence for the Irish renewables sector.