Eamon Ryan hails ‘rooftop revolution’ as ESB announces one gigawatt of solar power now connected to grid –enough to power 400,000 homes

One gigawatt – or 1,000 megawatts – is almost 20pc of the peak demand for energy on Ireland’s electricity system.

During peak times, about 5.5 gigawatts (GW) are demanded from the grid.

One gigawatt is enough to power the equivalent of 400,000 homes when the sun is shining.

The milestone comes just two years after the first solar farm in the country was opened in Co Wicklow in 2022.

The figure represents a combination of utility-scale solar connections, microgeneration (mainly domestic rooftop solar panels) and non-exporting solar generation.

There are 500 megawatts (MW) of utility-scale solar connections, of which 369MW are from larger projects connected to the transmission system that is managed by EirGrid.

From domestic solar rooftops, the one gigawatt includes 300MW of microgeneration, and 200MW is from non-exporting solar generation.

In the Government’s 2023 Climate Action Plan, Ireland has a target to reach 8GW of solar energy by 2030.

Commenting on the announcement, Environment Minister Eamon Ryan said it marked an important milestone in Ireland achieving its climate targets.

“The ‘rooftop revolution’ has seen solar panels becoming an increasing feature across every town and suburb of the country, providing clean, indigenous electricity on over 82,000 homes,” Mr Ryan said.

“Today’s announcement marks an important milestone in Ireland’s journey to 8GW of solar connections by 2030 and shows that even in ‘cloudy Ireland’, we can harness our homegrown green resources to power homes and businesses.”

The managing director of ESB Networks, Nicholas Tarrant, said it was an achievement not only for the ESB and the solar industry, but for domestic solar customers across Ireland.

“Enabling the connection of 1,000MW of clean solar power on to Ireland’s electricity network is a significant collective achievement for ESB Networks, our solar industry partners, and indeed the 82,000-strong cohort of microgeneration customers across Ireland,” Mr Tarrant said.

“It is reducing our dependence on imported fossil fuels and ultimately delivering the electricity network for Ireland’s clean, electric future,” he added.

Last May, the Government abolished the 23pc Vat rate on the supply and installation of solar panels, bringing the average cost down by about €1,000.

While the price of solar panel installation varies depending on the number of panels installed, there are SEAI grants available to homeowners and businesses.

For domestic installation, the grant is capped at €2,100.

For businesses looking to install solar panels in farms, schools and community centres, a maximum grant of €162,600 is available.

Conall Bolger, of the Irish Solar Energy Association, said that in order for Ireland to meet its climate targets, there needed to be a significant contribution from solar electricity.