'It has served our country well': Proposal to wind-down Ardnacrusha Power Station raised

The time has come to have a “mature conversation” about the future of the Ardnacrusha Power Station, as it reaches its centenary.

That’s according to Fine Gael Senator PJ Murphy, the Galway man being one of a number of members of the Upper House who raised the facility in Clare during a debate.

The comments were supported by Limerick Fianna Fail Senator Dee Ryan.

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Senators argued that, while the power station was revolutionary when it opened in 1929, today, it only serves a reported 2% of Ireland’s electrical needs, and perhaps does not justify the impact it has on the River Shannon.

“It is time to consider the decommissioning of the Ardnacrusha power plant” was the verdict of Green Party Senator Malcolm Noonan, from Kilkenny.

“It has served our country well, but now produces a tiny proportion of the State’s electricity needs. I know a figure of 2% has been put out. It is probably less than that. It is perhaps as low as 0.1%. It could be wound down and put forward for Unesco world heritage status as a marvel of industrial engineering at the time,” he added.

Ms Ryan said: “It is a project we are proud of in the Mid-West. However, we need to ask whether, given the opportunity to develop vast amounts of renewable energy on our west coast, the time has come to consider, in a planned manner, changes to Ardnacrusha in support of water supply, ecology and economic development in other parts of the region.”