Construction work has started on a new solar farm in Co Kildare.

Located at Timahoe North it is part of a wider solar energy joint venture between energy providers Bord na Móna and ESB.

Voltalia has been appointed to carry out the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract of the solar farm over the next year. It is expected that Timahoe North solar farm will be fully operational by the end of 2024, with an installed capacity of 108MWp of renewable energy to the national grid.

The Timahoe North solar farm is part of a significant co-development agreement between Bord na Móna and ESB to develop solar power across four midlands locations in Kildare, Offaly and Roscommon. The joint venture will collectively deliver up to 500 MW of power from solar farms based on Bord na Móna lands. 

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Jim Dollard, ESB Executive Director, Generation & Trading, said: "This project shows the importance that ESB is placing in solar and demonstrates our commitment to developing a growing portfolio of solar assets in Ireland. ESB has a proven record of delivering renewable energy projects at scale and we are looking forward to working with our partners Bord na Móna to deliver Timahoe North and other projects in the future as part of this joint venture. This project is part of ESB's wider investment in solar farms, and ESB expect to invest €200m over the next two years in the first phase of our solar roll out, as we move towards our ultimate goal of achieving Net Zero by 2040."

Bord na Móna's Head of Renewable Energy John Reilly said: "We are very excited to launch the construction phase of Timahoe North, Bord na Móna’s first solar energy farm in partnership with ESB. Bord na Móna has made significant progress across other areas of renewable energy to date, notably onshore wind, but in line with our Brown to Green Strategy and current government policy, we are committed to continued expansion and diversification of our renewable energy portfolio."