Kildare breeding industry sparked into action at proposed battery storage plant

Concern is mounting in Kildare’s racing and breeding heartland at a submission to build a large battery energy storage system (Bess) at Dunnstown.

The developing lithium-ion technology enables excess power to be stored from off the grid and used to regulate it according to supply and demand. When operational it should pose no danger to lives, but there are fears from both residents and those looking after horses about the hazards of a potential fire.

Roughly within a 5km catchment area of the planned site is Punchestown racecourse and 20 significant studs, including the Aga Khan Studs of Gilltown and Sallymount, Juddmonte’s New Abbey Stud, Rathasker, Yeomanstown and several of Sheikh Mohammed’s premises.

Hugh Dillon, a vet and local landowner who has been among those leading the clarion calls of opposition, has done some research into accidents at other Bess facilities from Liverpool to South Korea.

"These fires, when they get going, are almost impossible to put out and the fire services are really not prepared as they’re quite specialist," he said.

"When they burn they release a range of toxins. Benzene and toluene are both carcinogens and cause problems with birth of foals, they can cause defects. There’s cyanide, carbon monoxide - if it was the kind of fire that went on for weeks, these gases and toxic plumes will be in the area for a long time."

He continued: "The really scary thing is that the biggest Bess in Germany is 50mw, it’s well regulated and well controlled. The Bess in planning for Dunnstown is 212mw - the second biggest in the world.

"The biggest in the world is in a desert in California, miles away from any population centres, and this is absolutely gigantic and the plan is to put it in the middle of a rural residential hamlet in the heart of Kildare. It’s quite close to Naas, with lots of people living there, and small studs. In my view it’s a crazy scheme."

Opponents have until Wednesday to register their objections, before a judgement is made by Kildare County Council in what appears a divisive case, with battery storage considered an important part of the evolving energy landscape.

Dillon said that independent individuals, those involved in the equine sphere and public health experts had all been among those to express concerns, while residents from the nearby parish of Two Mile House have voiced opposition in the Irish media.

Among the other issues he raised were the risk of cyber attacks and that insurers were considering refusing to underwrite horses in the area because of potential damage from Bess facilities.

"The last worrying thing is the company that is putting the proposal in, Strategic Power Projects Ltd, has been in existence only for a little over seven months," he added.

"Their director has previously been involved with setting up wind turbines and biodigesters, a totally different ballgame to Bess, which are hugely complicated and hugely dangerous.

"The main thing AIG insurance underwriters said in its insurance risk analysis was that the most important thing in regard to hazard mitigation was the experience of the operators."

Dillon and his counterparts have faced a race against time, with gathering information and engaging interested parties made more difficult due to the pandemic.

He continued: "Anybody putting in for a project like this should have meetings and involve stakeholders. I am an adjoining landowner, they never contacted me and as far as I know they’ve contacted only one landowner in the area.

"The first time I knew about it was two days after a notice went up in the next field. I’d describe this as a wolf dressed up in green clothing because it’s coming under the guise of green technology; green is the way we’re going and that’s the future.

"However, it’s important to note this is a storage system which will be used to store massive amounts of energy and there is currently not enough renewable energy being produced in the entire country to fill it."

Read more

Highland Reel off the mark as Premiere reels to victory at Hamilton

Levy Board supporting rare native equine breeds with grants totalling £165,500

We have a winning grandson - another first for fantastic Frankel