WIND FARMS in Clare will generate more than €4.36m for Clare County Council this year.
This year, wind farms will contribute 8.72 percent of all commercial rates paid to the Council. The figure of €4.36m is enough to cover the Council’s entire local contribution towards road maintenance and improvement works across the county.
New data compiled by Halpin’s on behalf of Wind Energy Ireland (WEI) has ound that wind farms will provide almost €75m in commercial rates to local authorities across the country. In nine counties, payments from wind farms will make up more than 10 per cent of their entire commercial rates income.
Commercial rates are a local property tax charged by county councils and city councils on commercial and industrial properties.
In 2024, the last full year where data is available, Clare wind farms contributed over €320,000 to various projects in their locality.
David Halpin owner Halpin’s stated, “The contribution of the wind sector to local councils cannot be understated. Outside of major urban areas, wind projects are often the largest single contributors to their county”.
CEO of Wind Energy Ireland, Noel Cunniffe outlined, “Every wind turbine generating electricity helps reduce our reliance on imported fossil fuels while bringing investment and long-term economic benefits to local communities. Irish made energy also helps insulate businesses from global economic shocks, inflation and secures existing jobs”.
He added, “Here in Clare, wind energy will provide almost nine per cent of all commercial rates paid in 2026. That means the council’s entire locally-funded contribution to road maintenance and improvement works could be backed by wind. This shows the real benefits that renewable energy is bringing to rural Ireland and to counties like Clare”.
152,913 tonnes of carbon emissions have been saved in Clare via wind energy. The county has the capacity to generate 274 MW of wind energy, representing 4.3 per cent of Ireland’s total wind generation capacity.
