IWEA publishes first quarterly wind report

Wind provided 37 per cent of our electricity in Q1 2019

The Irish Wind Energy Association, Ireland’s largest renewable energy organisation, this morning published the first of what will be regular quarterly reports on the performance of the industry and revealed that wind provided 37 per cent of Ireland’s electricity in the first quarter of 2019.

Dr David Connolly, CEO of the Irish Wind Energy Association, said: “This is our best Quarter One performance ever. We had a very strong start to the year for wind energy, particularly in February when energy produced the most electricity, even surpassing natural gas, so we hope to build on this in the coming months.

“Wind energy is an Irish success story, driving down electricity costs for consumers, cutting millions of tonnes of CO2 emissions every year and securing a homegrown energy future that doesn’t depend on importing fossil fuels.”

The 37 per cent share of electricity demand amounted to more than 2.8 million MWh of electricity, compared to 2.7 million in the first quarter of 2018. The average Irish household uses approximately 4.2 MWh of electricity every year.

The total installed capacity of Ireland’s wind farms has now risen to 3,700 MW, approximately enough to power 2.2 million Irish homes annually.

Key statistics

Wind energy’s share of electricity demand: 37% – up from 35% in Q1 2018

Total amount of electricity generated by wind in Q1 2019: 2,827,067 MWh – up from 2,731,000 MWh in Q1 2018.

Total installed wind energy capacity at end of Q1 2019: 3,700 MW.

Number of new wind farms built: 2

Total new capacity installed: 33 MW.

Amount of wind energy dispatched down in Q1 2019: 207,839 MWh

Note to Editors

The figures in the IWEA Quarterly Report are based on data provided by EirGrid, the SEAI and our own members. Some figures are provisional and may change as new data comes in.

A megawatt (MW) is a unit of power. A single megawatt is equivalent to around 1,000 kilowatts. Boiling a kettle, for example, takes around two kilowatts.

A megawatt-hour (MWh) is a unit of energy. It is normally used to refer to the amount of electricity generated or consumed. A standard Irish household would use around 4.5 MWh every year.

Wind energy is ‘dispatched down’ when wind farms are instructed by EirGrid, as the system operator, to stop generating electricity.