Strong opposition to energy storage project in Inishowen

North West Correspondent

A community in Inishowen, Co Donegal, living near the proposed site of the first iron-air battery storage project in Europe say they are strongly opposed to the development.

More than 150 people attended a public meeting in Buncrana last night where plans for the proposed energy project were discussed in detail.

A spokesperson for the Buncrana – Fahan Against Untested Battery Storage Group said they felt "Inishowen is being used as a guinea pig".

Future Energy Ireland has lodged a planning application with Donegal County Council to build 248 battery energy storage units in the form of metal shipping containers approximately 12 metres in length by 2.5 metres in width and height on a seven-acre site.

The company say the proposed facility, the first of its kind in Europe, would be operational for 30 years and situated on a site adjacent to Trillick electricity substation near Buncrana.

The proposed Ballynahone Energy Storage project would seek to absorb surplus renewable energy during times of high output and provide the power back into the grid during extreme weather, outages or low renewable generation.

The company expects the project, which would take 12 months to build, would be capable of storing 1 gigawatt hour (GWh) of energy while future projects will be capable of storing up to 8GWh.

Some of the fears highlighted at last night’s meeting about the proposed project around 4km outside Buncrana, included environmental factors, health and safety concerns and the long-term performance of the project. An online petition has been started against the proposed development.

Concerns were raised at the public meeting that concerns were not sufficiently addressed during a statutory community engagement programme earlier this year.

Patrick McGonagle from Trillick said unsatisfactory answers "sparked more fear within the community."

Donegal chair of the Irish Farmers' Association Joe Sweeney believes the proposed location is not suitable and it could have been handled better.

"They've [company] done their own thing, and it's just got all the locals up in arms. It’s not the right way to go," he said.

Project Officer with the Mill River Conservation Group Tomas Lawrence reiterated Mr Sweeney's remarks.

"The proposed development is next to the Mill River catchment. It's a test site, really one of its kind. There hasn't been enough public engagement and rigorous research as far as I can see," Mr Lawrence added.

FuturEnergy is proposing using an iron-air battery for the Ballynahone Energy Storage project. The iron-air batteries would be housed in containers on concrete foundations.

The principle of the iron-air battery operation is reversible rusting; while discharging, the battery absorbs oxygen and converts iron metal to rust; while charging, it converts the rust back to iron and the battery outputs oxygen.

The iron-air battery technology has been created by a US company called Form Energy who raised over $1 billion in investment since it was founded in 2017.

In a statement to RTÉ News, a spokesperson for the US company said: "Form Energy's iron-air technology is designed with safety as a key priority. The active components of our iron-air battery system are some of the safest, cheapest, and most abundant materials on the planet - low-cost iron, water, and air."

The company said it has "already conducted thousands of tests at the cell level, overwhelmingly demonstrating safe and reliable operation."

It added: "We currently have full scale modules on test in California. Our focus on compliance with EU regulations will ensure that we meet or exceed all safety requirements before deployment.

"Form Energy’s first commercial project will be deployed in Minnesota in early 2025. By the time we reach Ireland, we anticipate having delivered 14 GWh of energy storage capacity to leading utility customers across the US. Our first battery system to be deployed in Ireland, therefore, will be well-tested and field proven from significant operational experience in the US," the company said.

The company added: "As we move toward deployments first in the US and then in Ireland, Form Energy remains focused on meeting all regulatory requirements.

"Additionally, Form Energy will actively pursue the certifications necessary to ensure that our iron-air battery technology complies with all necessary local safety, health, and environmental protection standards. These processes are being aligned with our deployment schedule in each market.

FuturEnergy Ireland is a venture between Coillte and the ESB.

Áine Daly from Trillick who lives nearby the proposed site said they are not against renewable energy; however, she feels the chosen location is not suitable and the technology needs further testing.

"There are houses all around. It's not the place for it. The fact that we're from Donegal doesn't help. We are finding it very, very stressful."

Ms Daly's home was built with defective concrete blocks, as was the home of her neighbour Mari McGonagle.

"Both of us have defective blocks houses in our houses, Mari has to move out this week and I will have to move out in a few years. We've had enough."

Ms McGonagle said her home had to be knocked down because of "a lack of legislation and standards."

She fears the proposed for the planned project has not been scrutinised sufficiently in Ireland.

"It's just too much but we will fight this. We are a community that's going to stand together," she added.

Future Energy Ireland said on its website the project is being designed in accordance with all applicable best practice guidance and regulations.

A spokesperson said that as the planning application is currently with Donegal County Council for review and decision, they therefore wish to respect the role of the Planning Authority in carrying out its statutory duty before commenting further on this project.

The company submitted their planning application in late September. The public can make submissions on the proposed development until 27 October and a decision is due from Donegal County Council in mid-November.