Enerpower develops Ireland’s largest Solar Farm with help from NWRC and cross-border InterTradeIreland programme
By Aoife Curran
Waterford-based company Enerpower have developed a unique solar photovoltaic generating station with help from North West Regional College (NWRC) Business Support Centre (BSC) and InterTradeIreland’s Innovation Boost programme. The cross-border collaborative project saw the development of a modular, large, utility scale Solar Photovoltaic (PV) generating station which provides renewable electricity to the Enerpower’s commercial, industrial and residential clients.
NWRC Electronics & ICT Technical Consultant, Cathal Ferry explained: ‘’We first engaged with Enerpower and their Managing Director, Owen Power, around 2 years ago and discussed the exciting opportunities that Owen had identified for the renewable energy market. We worked together on completing the application and were delighted to be awarded the funding from InterTradeIreland for an 18-month project. Luke Deasy, who had a number of years’ experience in the construction industry, was appointed as Project Manager.
‘’The project went from strength to strength as it progressed, and the benefits and innovation were made clear for both the business and ourselves at the NWRC. The Innovation Boost project was completed in January of 2022 and resulted in the completion of Ireland’s largest Solar Farm with up to 5.6MW of power generation capacity. It was a fantastic opportunity for us at the NWRC to work with Enerpower and we wish them all the success in the future.’’
Owen Power, Managing Director at Enerpower said: “Enerpower were delighted to have been awarded the InterTradeIreland funding that supported us to recruit a high-calibre engineer to manage and deliver this project, with the support of the NWRC. Luke worked on the development of a utility scale Solar PV Generating station. This has helped to further develop and extend the products and services that Enerpower as a leading renewable energy provider can offer our clients.”
Luke Deasy, Director of Operations at Enerpower added: “I was delighted to have been chosen by Enerpower to deliver this project and grateful for the InterTradeIreland Innovation Boost programme and the collaboration with the NWRC. The development of this solar PV generation station is complete and operational. It is Ireland’s largest Solar Farm and is testament to the entire team who worked very hard to bring it to fruition. The cross-border expertise and collaboration afforded to the project couldn’t have been achieved without the help of InterTradeIreland and its partners in NWRC.
Janet Toal, Operations Manager of Innovation Programmes at InterTradeIreland, said: “Innovation is fundamental for every business and we are delighted to have facilitated the cross-border collaboration between NWRC and Enerpower through Innovation Boost. At InterTradeIreland we support businesses across the island who are ready to implement change through collaborative sharing of expertise and skills. The programme is open to applications and I would encourage any small business that may be interested to get in touch.”
For more information about Enerpower visit https://enerpower.ie/, and for further details on how the BSC can help your business email businesssupport@nwrc.ac.uk or to find out more about the Innovation Boost programme see https://intertradeireland.com/innovation/innovation-boost
