Nuclear power in Ireland
The plan envisioned four reactors to be built at the site, but was dropped in 1981 after strong opposition from anti-nuclear lobby groups throughout the 1970s, particularly in 1978 with concerts and rallies being held at Carnsore Point attended by popular musician Christy Moore.
[15] Following the completion of the HVDC Moyle cable in 2001, connecting Northern Ireland and Scotland, and the larger capacity 500 MW East-West Interconnector in 2012, a submarine cable that connects County Dublin with Wales, Ireland has been supported with electricity from the generation of the Welsh Wylfa fission-electric power station and fission electricity in Britain as a whole.
In 2007, Ireland's Electricity Supply Board made it known that it would consider a joint venture with a major European Union energy company to build nuclear capacity.
[5] A 2012 International Energy Agency (IEA) report said that Ireland is highly dependent on imported oil and natural/fossil gas.
About 60% of Ireland's electricity already comes from gas-fired generation, which adds to energy security concerns, particularly as 93% of its gas supplies come from a single transit point in Scotland.
As of 2014, a Generation IV nuclear station was envisaged in competition with a biomass burning facility to succeed Moneypoint.
[20] As with the other members of the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom), Ireland funds nuclear fusion energy research, including the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, now known simply as the ITER project, with the Irish contribution being managed by the National Centre for Plasma Science & Technology at Dublin City University.
[26] Ireland is a member state signatory to the Nuclear Exporters Committee, which requires indigenous exploration and processing companies conduct all uranium-ore extraction and handling.
