Renewable Energy Generation
Dail Éireann — 2026-02-24
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Louis O'Hara (SF), Galway East

I attended a public meeting in Abbeyknockmoy in my constituency last week. Power Capital is proposing to develop a very large solar project there. It is already developing one nearby in Grange. There are proposals to install a battery energy storage system as part of these projects. This has caused unease in those communities because in January of last year there was a fire at a separate lithium-ion system based in nearby Claregalway. Three fire fighters have not been able to return to work since dealing with that incident, and the local firefighters have said they are totally unprepared to deal with such incidents. These proposed solar farms and battery systems are in very close proximity to residential areas.
I have submitted parliamentary questions on the safety and regulatory requirements for these systems, but there has been very little information coming back and very little in terms of fire safety. On behalf of those communities, I ask the Minister to outline any compliance regulations that are there to ensure that these systems are monitored and operated in a safe manner. Does he have concerns about the ability of the fire services to deal with any potential incidents? Will we see specific planning guidelines in this area?

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-02-24/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:40+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-02-24