Aurivo Co-operative Society has announced that it is investing €12m in a wood pellet burner and boiler system at its dairy ingredients facility in Ballaghaderreen.

Aurivo has said that this major step in its decarbonisation journey is co-funded by the Shared Island Sustainability Capital Grant Scheme delivered by Enterprise Ireland, InterTradeIreland and Invest Northern Ireland.

The investment is set to reduce Aurivo’s carbon emissions by about 7,500 tonnes of CO2 yearly, as it will replace a large amount of fossil fuel currently used at the facility.

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The new system will be “fueled by locally supplied, sustainably certified wood pellets”, Aurivo said.

In addition to its environmental benefits, Aurivo stated that the biomass system will provide greater energy cost certainty as “moving away from imported fossil fuels towards a stable, renewable certified fuel source will protect the business from the volatility that has characterised global energy markets in recent years”.

The project will also help support local employment in construction, engineering and supply chain sectors, Aurivo said.

Collaboration

Speaking at the launch, Minister of State for small business, retail and employment Alan Dillon said: “Delivered through the Shared Island Sustainability Capital Grant Scheme, this investment by Aurivo highlights the impact of strategic partnership in accelerating industrial climate action while strengthening regional economic resilience.”

CEO of Aurivo Co-operative Society Donal Tierney said: "This multimillion [euro] investment represents a transformative step in reducing the carbon footprint of our dairy ingredients facility while strengthening the long-term resilience of our operations.

“By significantly increasing our use of renewable biomass and reducing reliance on imported fossil fuels, we are taking decisive action that will deliver measurable emissions reductions while providing greater certainty around our future energy costs.

“We are very grateful for the support of Enterprise Ireland, InterTradeIreland and Invest Northern Ireland through the Shared Island Sustainability Capital Grant Scheme,” he said.

Head of food and sustainability at Enterprise Ireland Tom Cusack commented: “A key goal for Enterprise Ireland is to support companies to make the transition to the low-carbon, resource-efficient economy of the future and innovative solutions like Aurivo’s wood pellet burner and boiler system supports this critical agenda.”