ShareRES 2nd Interregional Event in Ballyliffin (Ireland)
The 2nd ShareRES Interregional Event took place on 24th & 25th October 2023 in the picturesque village of Ballyliffin, Co Donegal, Ireland. Mr Micheal McGarvey, Director of Service, Water & Environment, Donegal County Council opened the event and welcomed the 30 attendees. Each of the partners and stakeholders were invited to introduce themselves to the group. Con McLaughlin, Senior Engineer, Donegal County Council gave a brief overview of the project and the objectives set out and invited the Project Manager, Ana Martinez from the lead partner, Consorcio Agencia Extremeña de la Energía to address the group.
First speaker up on the agenda was Gillian Baker, Programme Manager with SEAI - Renewable Electricity Support Scheme. Gillian gave a very informative presentation to the group on the work carried out by SEAI in relation to Community Energy Power and how the communities are supported by the ‘Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland’ (SEAI).
This was a very informative presentation and was a perfect fit for the ShareRES Project, which was well received by the attendees.
Next on the agenda, was a very detailed and informative presentation by Mel Gavin, R&D Co-Ordinator, Atlantic Technological University, Sligo. Mel is also the Project Manager and is the lead partner in the LEAP Project (EU Life Programme). Mel is regarded as an all-round expert in the energy transition and he gave excellent presentations on Good practice toolkits (AgroRES Project) and also Consultation on "Private Wires".
The final presentation of Day 1 was given by JP Prendergast, Community Power. JP is also a member of the Trusted Adviser Panel which is part of the Community Enabling Framework. The presentation given by JP included examples of how communities working together can deliver on large projects. In this case, the Community Group has grown from 15 members in 2015 to 149 members today working together to address the impacts of climate change, raise awareness in the local communities in relation to renewable energy and to create green jobs within the local economy.
Workshops on Good Practice Learning followed and a number of partners shared examples including:
- Donegal County Council – Sustainable Energy Community Programme delivered through SEAI.
- Donegal County Council - MOU between Local Authorities and SEAI to assist SEC’s deliver the Energy Master Plans.
- Cyprus – Energy Agency and University of Technology working in collaboration to change how shared public spaces are used.
The final activity of Day 1 was the partners attending the second steering committee meeting, which was led by Ana Martinez, Project Manager.
Day 2 commenced with a site visit to the Ballyliffin Lodge and Spa Hotel site to see some of the renewable technology introduced by the private sector. Community owned sites are work in progress but not fully developed for viewing yet.
This site visit demonstrated how the business uses the renewable energy from biomass woodchip boiler and also solar power to offset the rising energy costs. The hotel have also added a ‘smart energy management’ system to control heating in zones / rooms and also LED lighting / sensor controls throughout the hotel.
The final site visits and presentations were hosted at the Carndonagh Public Services Centre
Con McLaughlin – presented the work undertaken by neighbouring Atlanfish Ltd.
Aine McLaughlin, Inishowen Sustainable Energy Community (SEC) gave a detailed presentation on the work being carried out by the SEC.
The final presentation of the day was delivered by Eithne McLaughlin, LAN Sustainable Energy Community (SEC) outlining the detail of ‘Meet the Builder’ workshops currently being hosted by that group with support from Mel Galvin, ATU and Co-ordinator for SEAI.
More information about the event can be found in the Event dossier: https://www.interregeurope.eu/shareres/library