Tipperary electricity generation plant to go to planning in early 2025

Deputy Alan Kelly has today welcomed the acceleration of the Silvermines Hydro planning process with the announcement of upcoming public consultation before year end and the lodging of a formal planning application next year. 

Commenting after receiving an update at the site on the project from CEO and founder Darren Quinn, Deputy Kelly said that the project is now very much becoming a reality and a transformational one for the locality, region and State at that. 

“It’s difficult to believe that it’s nearly a decade since I first set foot on the site, then as Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government, and was delighted then to give it my full support. But we’re now within touching distance of this project being commenced.

“Darren informed me today that he will launch local public consultation in the Silvermines over the coming weeks and early next year they will commence full national public consultation on the project. They will then lodge planning permission next year with commencement of works on the giant project in the second half of 2026. 

“I’m delighted to have been in a position to support this over the last 9 years since Darren came to my office. The project is formally a project of special importance at EU level and of course nationally. 

“It’s almost impossible to overstate its importance. It’s a 296 megawatt, zero emission project that will generate enough electricity to power the equivalent of 200,000 homes. That’s more than double the number of houses in Tipperary and delivering that level of electricity via one project is game changing even at a national level.

“On one hand it will help us meet our climate change targets and it will also help give Ireland a level of energy security it doesn’t have today. On the other, it will create 400 jobs during the peak construction phase and up to 100 jobs there-after. The indirect employment from it will be very significant.”

Deputy Kelly said it’s also a huge boost to Tipperary’s reputation. “From an inward investment perspective, this really strengthens our hand as a county. Companies want to be located in areas with strong sustainability credentials and this will be game-changing for Tipperary in that regard. We already have one of the highest numbers of wind installations of any inland county in the country so to have this other renewable source on top of it gives us a compelling story.”

Speaking after the meeting, Darren Quinn, who conceived the idea for the pump storage facility a decade ago, said that it’s a very exciting time for the team. 

“We’re thrilled to be where we are, with our investment on board and on the cusp of lodging our planning application. All going well, we will move onto the construction phase towards end of 2026. It’s been a great journey so far, but we would not have been able to make it were it not for the support of Deputy Kelly. 

“From the very off he’s been hugely supportive and helped us get it on the map nationally, which was hugely important for us. Alan has been a huge supporter and advocate of the project here in the Silvermines for the last almost 10 years now. 

“We’re at a stage now where the project is moving close to the planning and engineering design and we will be submitting the planning application next year and hopefully will see construction start soon after that.”

The project will be developed from the existing disused open-cast mining site, where operations ceased in 1993, south of Silverminesvillage in North Tipperary.   

The project will involve a total investment of €650 million in what is one of the largest ever private infrastructure spends in the country.  

Significantly from a local perspective, the project will not alone be a zero emission hydro electric power station but will also greatly advance the environmental rehabilitation of the area, with water in the existing reservoir set to be decontaminated and ending the seepage of harmful minerals into local water tables.