Great Island Power Station

Great Island Power Station
Map
Country
  • Republic of Ireland
Location
Coordinates52°16′44″N 6°59′31″W / 52.279°N 6.992°W / 52.279; -6.992
StatusOperational
Construction began1963 (61 years ago) (1963)
Commission date
  • December 1967 (56 years ago) (1967-12)
  • Upgraded in September 2014 (10 years ago) (2014-09)
Construction cost
  • 330 million € (2014)
Owners
Thermal power station
Primary fuel
Turbine technology
Site area
  • 143 acres (58 ha)
Cooling source
Combined cycle?Yes
Power generation
Units operational1 × 460 MW
Make and modelMitsubishi Power (1)
Units decommissioned2 × 60 MW
1 × 120 MW
Nameplate capacity
  • 460 MW
External links
CommonsRelated media on Commons
[edit on Wikidata]

Great Island Power Station is a gas fired and former heavy fuel oil fired power station situated near Waterford Harbour in Great Island, County Wexford, Ireland, that supplies electricity to more than 500,000 Irish homes. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Barrow and Suir, near Campile. The station opened in 1967 and was operated by the Electricity Supply Board (ESB) with three heavy fuel oil units and a total power of 240 MW since 1972. The station was scheduled to close by 2010,[1][2] until it was sold to Endesa in January 2009.[3] In October 2012, the plant was acquired by SSE Thermal.

In September 2014, the oil powered units were shut down, and replaced by a new 430 MW combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) gas fired plant on the same site.[4][5] The project needed a new 44.5 km gas pipeline from the existing transmission network at Baunlusk, 6 km south of Kilkenny city.[6]

  1. ^ "Great Island generating station". ESB Website. Archived from the original on 18 April 2008. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
  2. ^ "No more smoke from chimneys". New Ross Standard. 30 April 2008. Archived from the original on 30 March 2009. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
  3. ^ Slattery, Laura (26 February 2011). "Spanish energy firm Endesa putting Irish unit up for sale". Irish Times. Archived from the original on 5 March 2011. Retrieved 1 November 2011.
  4. ^ "Endesa Ireland - Great Island Power Project - Project Description". Endesa. Archived from the original on 25 April 2012. Retrieved 1 November 2011.
  5. ^ "Great Island Combined Cycle Gas Turbine Power Plant, Wexford". Power Technology. 2015-02-09.
  6. ^ "Great Island pipeline plan". New Ross Standard. 1 November 2011. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 1 November 2011.