Tipperary solar farm gets green light to connect to national grid despite concerns
An Coimisiún Pleanála has approved a planning application that will allow a Tipperary solar farm to connect to the national grid.
Springmount Solar Farm Limited applied directly to the planning appeals board for permission to add a 110kV substation to their solar farm in the townlands of Kilmolash Upper and Rathkeevin.
The proposed substation will allow the solar farm to be connected to the national electricity grid.
Planning permission for the solar farm was granted on appeal in 2024.
Planning files show that Tipperary County Council submitted an observation to the application, raising concerns that an underground cable may have to be diverted when the N24 Cahir to Waterford road upgrade gets under way.
Despite this, An Coimisiún Pleanála granted planning permission for the substation, subject to 15 conditions.
The site would “make a positive contribution to Ireland’s requirements for renewable energy in accordance with national, regional and local policy,” the An Coimisiún Pleanála inspector said.
One condition requires that the substation be installed within 10 years of the permission being granted, while another states that an archeological appraisal of the site be done before the works are carried out, and that no foundations be built within 150 meters from an active badger set during their breeding season, which runs from December to June.
The conditions also include that Springmount Solar agree the exact interactions between the cables from the solar farm and the upgraded N24 Cahir to Waterford road, which was re-included on the National Development Plan this week.
The planning application for the solar farm itself was granted by Tipperary County Council in 2023, before being appealed to An Coimisiún Pleanála.
The project was appealed by a local resident, who raised concerns about the proximity of the proposed solar farm to her home, and that she would be subject to glint and glare from the development.
In an appeal letter, she wrote: “[my house], referred to as ‘House 26’ in the ‘Glint and Glare Report’ is predicted to experience ‘substantial’ effects of glint and glare from the proposed site.
Even with plans to plant hedging to mitigate against reflections from the solar panels, it would be a number of years before these would be high enough.
"It also states that it will take at least three to five years for this proposed screening to reach what they deem to be an 'adequate' height,” the appellant added.
Despite this, permission was granted for the development in August 2024.