A new report shows a fall in the amount of wind energy produced by Irish wind farms in May, due to the good weather.
The data from Wind Energy Ireland shows that 21% of our energy last month was met by wind energy.
"While there has been a drop in electricity generation from wind in May compared to last year's figure, wind farms have performed well over the first five months of 2023 by providing 35% of our electricity," said Noel Cunniffe, CEO of Wind Energy Ireland.
"On 10 May, Irish wind farms met over half of Ireland’s electricity demand for that day," he aded.
The report confirms that wholesale electricity prices fell for the fifth consecutive month in May.
The average wholesale price per megawatt-hour during May was €105.19, down 16% from €125.57 the previous month.
"The continued fall in wholesale electricity prices is welcome news. Consumers and businesses are struggling every day with high energy bills," said Mr Cunniffe.
"Affordability is really important as well as reducing our reliance on fossil fuels. We know from the recent EPA report on Ireland's Greenhouse Gas emissions that we need to act fast to reduce our carbon emissions and prioritise responding to the climate emergency," he added.
Mr Cunniffe said they are expecting to see significant progress in the second half of the year with new wind farms connecting to the grid, solar projects coming on stream and the first offshore wind projects applying for planning permission.
"Wind energy projects are moving at pace, and the quicker we have wind farms up and running, the sooner we can rely on more Irish renewable energy to provide our electricity and reduce our reliance on volatile imported fossil fuels," he added.
The results of today's report are based on EirGrid's SCADA data compiled by MullanGrid and on market data provided by ElectroRoute.
