Clare Island link
Island LinkOperationalIE20 kV1998
Status:Operational
Type:island link
Website:esbarchives.ie
The Clare Island cable is a distribution‑level submarine electricity link that connects the Republic of Ireland mainland to Clare Island (Co. Mayo) to replace or augment local island diesel generation and improve security of supply for a small island community. Project documentation and contemporary accounts describe ESB staff and ESB...
Supply Chain (0)
Project Timeline (7)
1998Commercial Operations Full Power
During 1998, ESB completed the submarine cable connection linking Clare Island off the Mayo coast to the Irish national grid, replacing the island’s former diesel generator-based electricity system. This new cable supply allowed residents and local businesses to enjoy a more reliable and higher-capacity power service, as evidenced by accounts of a brighter, quieter Christmas on the island following the switchover.
1 Jan 1998Cable Installation Start
ESB completed laying the submarine power cables linking Inishbofin and Clare Island to the Irish national grid, using a cable-laying vessel to install approximately 20 km of cable weighing about 600 tonnes at a rate of 1.5–3 km per hour, with offshore offloading and shoreline haul-in operations described.
~Jan 1990Capital Support Awarded
In the early 1990s ESB began considering replacing expensive diesel generation on larger offshore islands, including Clare Island, with subsea connections to the national grid and prepared a submission that secured European Community funding for this multi-island cable project, paving the way for subsequent phases such as the Inishbofin/Clare Island link, for which the EU agreed to pay half of the expected £2.6 million cost.
Date TBDCable Installation Complete
As part of ESB’s island electrification programme, the subsea power cables serving Inishbofin and Clare Island were fully laid, completing the submarine cable installation between Clare Island harbour and Lugadamba near Louisburgh on the Mayo coast. The heavy‑duty, three‑core, EPR‑insulated, double wire‑armoured cable—picked up from the Pirelli plant, weighing about 600 tonnes for 20 km of length and rated at over 300 amps—was laid from a specialist vessel using satellite navigation, with shore pull‑ins, burial, concrete encasement, and additional near‑shore protection, and formed the core of the new grid link to replace local diesel generation on Clare Island, alongside extensive onshore network upgrades funded in part by the EU.
Date TBDGeophysical Survey Complete
As part of the project to connect Clare Island and other offshore islands to the national grid, ESB International completed original hydrographic surveys to pinpoint subsea routes for the cables, providing the seabed routing information needed before the subsea links, including the Clare Island cable from the island harbour to Lugadamba near Louisburgh, were laid by contractors.
Date TBDCable Supplier Selected
The submarine cable used to connect Clare Island and Inishbofin to the Irish national grid was supplied by Pirelli, with the laying vessel collecting approximately 20 km of cable weighing about 600 tonnes from the Pirelli plant before installation.
Date TBDOnshore Construction Start
As part of ESB’s project to link Clare Island and Inishbofin to the Irish national grid, onshore electricity lines on both the islands and the mainland began being upgraded, including conversion of networks from 10 kV to 20 kV and installation of higher-rated insulators to reduce interruptions caused by sea salt deposits.