‘Climate benefits and lure of 72 jobs’

ELEMENT Power claim that the Moanvane wind farm will create 72 jobs during the construction, operation and maintenance phases of the proposed project.

The plans, which received more than 200 submissions, were approved by Offaly County Council, but the company lodged a first-party appeal to An Bord Pleanála, as the local authority in granting permission reduced the number of wind turbines from 12 to 10. It earlier stood at 15 in the original proposal.

Pat O’Sullivan, Element Power’s head of communications and stakeholder engagement (Ireland), said: ‘This project will not only help tackle climate change by generating clean, green and reliable energy for Irish households and businesses, but will also bring significant opportunity to the area.

‘From an early stage we have put much time and energy into engaging with the local community, seeking their input to help us design a project that would work well in this location and also bring real and tangible benefits to the local area,’ he said. ‘We are delighted that the Council has reached a positive decision.’