We Could Be Heroes

Northern Ireland could be a leader in the renewable energy sector globally, that is if the current planning system here is overhauled and it aligns itself with 2030 and 2050 net zero objectives SSE Ireland Chairman, Mark Ennis CBE tells Emma Deighan.

Mark Ennis has been at the forefront of many sectors, including the chair position at Invest NI for eight years. He’s been instrumental in overhauling and modernising operations no matter what their nature throughout his career.

From medicine to business and, today, energy in his role as non-executive chair at SSE Ireland, he has been a part of many companies that have orchestrated change in their respective domains.

SSE is one of those companies, spearheading a renewables revolution but it’s going to take more than the brawn of what is the biggest wind farm owner-operator in the UK and Ireland to get Northern Ireland to reach its full potential Mark believes. And that potential could be as a world leader and exporter of renewables, he says.

A change in planning policy will be crucial as will a collaborative approach from all councils and both must be sympathetic to our role in reaching net zero targets for 2030 and 2050.

“My vision is that we could be a leading energy exporter,” Mark begins.

“We have the natural resources to export electricity from wind farms and make hydrogen from the excess. This could be a golden age for the region in terms of our renewable resource and opportunity. We just need a little bit of ambition and vision. We need to look at it as much more than meeting net zero targets, but about making Northern Ireland a leading exporter.”

It’s a vision that could put Northern Ireland on an economic high ground should the Executive return and planning processes are tweaked to prioritise proposals with net zero targets at their core.

“Our planning system is not fit for purpose. It takes no account of net zero goals. To get a grid in place to transport power from windy places, as well as the wind farm farms themselves, you need planning permission, and that’s been an issue.

“I try to champion, within SSE, investment in projects in Northern Ireland. I know if we had the right system and proper planning we would significantly increase our investment here but at the minute the planning risk is too high,” Mark continues.

He references one SSE project for a wind farm that was refused planning permission at the final hurdle after a spend of £2m over a six-year process.

“There was no accounting for net zero in that decision. That proposed wind farm was capable of 130MW, which would power 100k homes.

“When we are looking at developing a project, the board will look at the risks.”

For Northern Ireland to reach net zero targets for 2030 and 2050, Mark says it will require 10 times the number of wind farms of that one refused project. That would equal 1300MW — enough to power well over a million homes.

He says tension arises often around the question of where to position onshore wind farms here because of NI’s abundance of Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs) that quite often are the ideal location for wind farms.

Mark adds: “We recognise that but we need to be open-minded as to where wind farms could be situated or we will not make the targets.”

At the local government level, he says planning can be more complex and he stresses the need for council and community support so as not to further restrict development.

“The Department for Infrastructure makes ministerial calls based on outdated policies and those policies have nothing in them about net zero targets. What we need is to enact policy change and allow planning decisions to presume in favour of renewables and it’s important that local council decisions also align with that overall plan.”

For some a wind farm in one of NI’s AONBs garners resistance but Mark believes renewables and beauty spots can co-exist and become beneficial for its environs.

SSE Renewable’s Galway Wind Park in partnership with Coillte is a joint investment of over €280m. It is one example of how renewable energy projects can contribute much more than clean energy.

SSE pumped €90m into Irish Gross Domestic Product during the construction of that site, and €20m was spent with local suppliers and contractors.

Today the power generated at Galway Wind Park powers over 140,000 Irish homes and offsets over 175,000 tonnes of harmful CO2 emissions.

It also includes 48km of recreational trails while the area benefits from an annual fund of €400,000 which goes into community groups and scholarships.

“We build interactive infrastructure such as cycle tracks and nature walks around our windfarms which adds to the attraction of the area and encourages people to engage and learn about the benefits of renewable energy, something which encourages a changed mindset. We need new windfarms in Northern Ireland to meet our targets and as an established and trusted developer, we can support and aid communities as part of delivering that infrastructure.”

Mark says the motivation around renewable energy is shifting since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has cut off supply and put pressure on gas prices globally. He says the focus now is firmly on energy independence.

“The fundamental psyche has changed. Up until now, it has always been about climate change but what’s happened now is people are looking for the security of supply.

“I think we will start to see significant investment over the next number of years in renewables and all of Europe will start to seek to be independent of countries such as Russia,” he explains.

“To reach a position of energy independence we need to be selfsufficient and that will take investment in offshore wind. An offshore wind farm from conception to building traditionally takes 10 years so we need to start the process now and compress the time frame for development if we are to achieve this by the mid-thirties.

“As Northern Ireland hasn’t properly started the process for establishing offshore wind, we can only meet our 2030 targets through the accelerated development of wind farms onshore. To reach 70/80 per cent zero emissions we require 1300MW through onshore wind farms. That is double where we are at the minute.”

As a result of many factors that have placed increased energy price pressures on homes, SSE Airtricity will take the hit for its customers, Mark says. It will forego profits this year, instead focusing on customer support, by keeping tariffs as low as possible and via a £21m targeted customer support fund.

“We’ve identified over 60,000 homes in the north and south where we have recognised customers in difficulty. To support them we have kept prices at May 2022 levels until March 2023 and that’s a major initiative, which we believe is the most comprehensive in the sector.”

The company has also donated £1m to charities Saint Vincent de Paul and £1m to Bryson Charitable Group to deliver support in the community to needy families regardless of who supplies them electricity or gas.

Looking at prices in the year ahead and beyond Mark says: “I would hope to see a softening in two or three years but not to the level it was in 2019 and that is all dependent on what happens with Russia and Ukraine.“

Elsewhere in the business, SSE has its sights set on a super-fast EV charging network on some of Ireland’s biggest arterial routes.

These charger stations will be built in blocks of six to 10 charging units with two earmarked for Northern Ireland.

SSE in Northern Ireland also plans to emulate its energy efficiency retrofitting service which has recently increased its target of 30,000 homes by 2030 to 45,000 in the south — such is the demand. It does this through what Mark describes as a one-stop shop.

“We realised many families wanted to improve the energy efficiency of their homes but did not know where to start.

“In our model, SSE carries out the energy assessment free of charge and discusses options to improve energy efficiency in the home and identify and apply for the available grants. In Ireland we have partnered with An Post, the post office there, to provide low-cost finance for retrofitting projects.

“It’s a win-win for the householder. They can reduce their energy costs by up to 40% and for some, it won’t cost anything,” Mark says.

He says to act quickly and efficiently the Executive should look to best practices elsewhere and implement them instead of wasting time on consultation processes.

“Retrofitting will generate significant business opportunities too, for those involved in everything from solar panels to insulation.

“There is so much potential here,” he concludes.