Construction BUSINESS

The Cabinet is today expected to approve a multi-million euro redevelopment of Ros an Mhíl (Rossaveal) harbour in Co Galway.

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has signed off on a €25 million package to allow for the construction of a deep water pier at the Conamara (Connemara) port.

It is the latest stage in a long running effort to enhance the appeal of the facility for larger fishing vessels.

Initial planning permission for the works was granted in 2002, but that lapsed in 2011. A second application was granted in April 2018 and expires next year.

It is understood the department’s decision to approve funding for the project follows a detailed cost-benefit analysis on the plan in recent months.

Minister Charlie McConalogue is due to travel to Ros An Mhíl after today’s Cabinet meeting to formally launch the project.

Five design options have been identified, with the aim of providing an additional 200 metres of quayside and more than 70% increased depth.

The department plans to develop four hectares of land around the harbour as part of the latest plan.

It expects that work on the redevelopment could commence by the end of the year and may be completed by mid 2024.

Construction will be funded through the Fishery Harbour and Coastal Infrastructure Development Programme.

Minister McConalogue said the enhanced harbour will boost both the marine and local economies, provide improved facilities for the seafood industry and increase the attractiveness of Ros An Mhíl for both Irish and non-Irish fishing vessels.

Last October, a report, commissioned by Údarás na Gaeltachta, suggested Ros an Mhíl was well placed to serve as a support hub for companies planning to develop offshore wind farms.

The feasibility study said the development of a deep water port would allow it to function as a support location for the floating offshore wind (FOW) sector.

The study – carried out by Dublin Offshore Consultants – said additional infrastructure was needed to capitalise on the environmental and economic benefits of “new generation assets” in the years ahead.

The Government has set a target of 30 gigawatts (GW) of FOW off the Atlantic Coast by 2050.

The report’s authors modelled three scenarios, for low, medium and high output energy generators.

They found that even if Ros An Mhíl was to service 3GW, there would be the potential to generate between 300 and 900 jobs.

However, they also warned that corresponding investment would be needed to improve the national grid capacity.

High scenario modelling would also require other uses for electricity, such as the production of hydrogen and integration to a ‘super grid’.

Údarás na Gaeltachta hopes that the port could ultimately be used as a hub for the construction of several wind farms off the western seaboard.

Cathaoirleach, Anna Ní Ghallachair has described the development as “hugely significant”.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, she said that Ros an Mhíl is a traditional fishing port and tourism area with a ferry terminal that pre-pandemic had about 250,000 passengers a year, but now this development will allow a focus on renewable energy.

Ms Ní Ghallachair said this new hub is a focus for Údarás na Gaeltachta and a land bank that it owns is ready for development now.

She said that a start date for the project has not yet been announced but it is believed that the development will start “soon”.

Source RTE