Neoen Ireland’s Millvale Solar Farm in Co Wicklow – recently announced
The recently announced Millvale Solar Farm in Ashford, Co Wicklow is a welcome addition to Ireland’s renewables portfolio. We thought we should run the numbers for a simple comparison with the Eli Lilly Solar Farm in Kinsale, Co Cork.
Eli Lilly installed a 5.6 MWp solar farm in 2021, consisting of 12,500 panels covering 16 acres. The company used Longi 450 Wp panels which have a published efficiency of approx. 20%.
Neoen completed an 8 MWp solar farm in 2022, consisting of 33,600 panels covering 62.5 acres. The company used an unspecificed 240 Wp panel, with an estimated efficiency of approx. 14 – 16% (common efficiency range for solar modules of this size).
Commonly available solar module size and efficiency ratings are frequently published in the Photovoltaics Report from the Fraunhofer ISE.
Last year, we found that modules with 350-400 Wp and 20% efficiencies were widely available. This year Canadian Solar recently announced mass-production of their new HiKu6 module which offers up to 415 Wp with efficiency up to 21.5%. It’s a good barometer for what is widely available in the market.
Q. How much solar per acre? A. It depends on the developer
It’s a question that is often asked by students, farmers, and those with an interest in renewable energy. How much solar energy can be produced per acre? The answer was at one point 1 MWp for every 5 acres, but obviously there are a number of constantly changing variables in play – not least of which are the accountants who make investment decisions for large companies.
If it were a question of simple maths, then the answer to ‘how much solar per acre?’ would be something like ‘1 MW for every 2 or 3 acres’. Commercial solar panels are currently available with peak power of 600 – 700 Wp. The higher the peak power, the less area is required to produce the same amount of energy.
The Eli Lilly Solar Farm achieves around 0.35 MWp per acre.
The Neoen Millvale Solar Farm achieves around 0.128 MWp per acre.
| Eli Lilly, Kinsale, Co Cork | Neoen, Millvale, Co Wicklow | |
| Peak Power | 5.6 MWp | 8 MWp |
| Panels Installed | 12,500 | 33,600 |
| Land used | 16 acres | 62.5 acres |
| Peak power / panel | 450 Wp | 240 Wp |
| Panel efficiency | 20 % | 14 – 16 % (estimated) |
| Land use efficiency | 0.35 MWp / acre | 0.128 MWp / acre |
Given the different choices made in these two developments, we are very interested to see how these and other solar assets perform over time.
Hopefully the DSO, ESB Networks, will publish the relevant information at some point in the future, along with comparable information from the dozens of other solar farm projects which are currently under development, or going through the licencing process.
Another big milestone in Ireland, will be the completion of Statkraft’s solar developments around Ashbourne, County Meath – some large projects which are currently underway.
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