The leading renewable energy generator is celebrating 20 years of providing community funding support in Ireland.
SSE Renewables, which owns 582 MW of operational onshore wind capacity in the Republic of Ireland across 27 wholly owned and joint venture wind farm sites, is one of the leading contributors of voluntary wind farm community funding in the country.
The company's latest Community Investment Review for the financial year 2023-24, published today, reveals SSE Renewables has awarded €12.3 million of wind-powered funding investment directly to communities right across Ireland since 2003, when the company launched its first-ever community fund for Coreen Wind Farm in County Cavan.
The company's latest review also shows that SSE Renewables has provided just over €900,000 in community fund awards in the last year alone, benefiting 268 community groups and funding 17 academic scholarships to support access to Third Level education.
In the coming year, SSE Renewables will invite applications for community funding from two new wind farms, the 30MW Lenalea Wind Farm in County Donegal and the 101MW Yellow River Wind Farm in County Offaly.
Stephen Wheeler, Managing Director of SSE Renewables, said: "As one of the leading developers and operators of onshore wind in Ireland, we have been successfully sharing the value of our renewable energy projects with local communities for 20 years, contributing over €12 million into rural Ireland in the process. We have marked this significant milestone by enhancing our funding strategy to focus on delivering a greater lasting impact for communities.
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"With two more funds set to launch in the coming year at our newest wind farms in Donegal and Offaly, we will work with local communities to ensure our new community benefit funds focus on local priorities while ensuring decisions are made by local people. As we look ahead, we will continue to work to ensure our development pipeline of future onshore and offshore wind farm projects can generate meaningful impacts for neighbouring communities and local economies. We look forward to continuing to empower communities for many decades to come."
All SSE Renewables community investment funds are designed to align with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, with a focus on areas such as building sustainable communities, quality education, and promoting good health and well-being.
The latest Community Investment Review spotlights some of the organisations which are benefiting from SSE's ongoing funding from its operational renewable energy sites.
In the community of Kill, near Bindoo Wind Farm in Cavan, Rainbow Kids Playgroup have been working with parents and children to re-purpose a local property into an after-school haven. The project provides vital wrap-around local care for school-aged children and supports working parents. A key component of the new site is a nature garden with wildflowers, nesting boxes and raised beds for organic vegetable planting, which is maintained by the children who attend daily. The project was made possible with SSE funding of €9,200 from the 2023/24 Cavan and Monaghan Community Fund on behalf of the company's Gartnanane, Mullananalt and Bindoo wind farms.
Siobhan McKenna, Chairperson Rainbow Kids Playgroup, said: "As a result of the funding we received from SSE Renewables, we have made a safe area for 40 children to play in and develop a love and responsibility for nature from a young age."
In the coming year, SSE Renewables will open further community funds in Ireland. These include a new fund for the Lenalea Wind Farm in Donegal, a co-devevlopment for SSE Renewables with FuturEnergy Ireland that entered commercial operations last November, as well as a fund for the in-construction Yellow River Wind Farm in Offaly, a wholly-owned SSE project, which is on track to be operational in early 2025. Applications for the first rounds of both the Lenelea and Yellow River community funds will open within the year, with all decisions being made by locally appointed committees.
