Coolmore Stud-backed solar farm stalled by two appeals to An Coimisiún Pleanála
Gordon Deegan
Plans by a John Magnier Coolmore Stud-backed firm to erect a solar farm on a 549-acre site at Killough in south Tipperary have been stalled.
This follows An Coimisiún Pleanála (ACP) confirming two third-party appeals have been lodged against the decision by Tipperary Co Council to grant planning permission to the solar farm to Marmoris Limited, trading as Killough Solar.
ACP confirmed on Monday that the appeals have been lodged by the Moycarkey Community Association and Thomas Dwyer and Others.
The firm lodged the planning application with Tipperary County Council after Coolmore Stud paid out a reported €6.5 million for Killough Castle and accompanying estate of 527 acres in the early part of last year.
The documentation states that Killough Solar will create 80 to 100 jobs during the anticipated 18-month construction phase for the solar farm 6.5 km south of Thurles.
In the planning application, Marmoris has been granted a 10 year planning permission for 745,168 sq metres of solar panels in the town lands of Killough, Clohoge and Graigue, Co Tipperary.
The Council received 34 submissions with the vast bulk opposed to the plan and ACP may confirm further appeals in the coming days as it processes any additional appeals that may be lodged before the deadline for appeals at close of business on Monday.
In granting planning permission, the Council concluded that “the proposed development does not have an adverse impact upon the character of the area or the amenities of adjoining properties in the vicinity of the site”.
The planning authority granted planning permission after its planner’s report stated that the proposed layout includes a number of buffer areas including around Killough Castle, around recorded monuments, at the banks of the Lisnanagoue Stream and to provide for biodiversity areas.
The Council also concluded that the impact of the proposed development on landscape and visual amenity is not significant.
The planning authority found that notwithstanding the change of the landscape resulting from the new use, the solar panels are low profile, the site is not exposed or elevated, the residual impact once the proposed landscape mitigation boundary planting has become established is low.
In one objection against the solar farm, Margaret Byrne stated that she has "several serious concerns" regarding the proposed development.
Ms Byrne of Moycarkey Village, Thurles stated that the proposed development will have a significant negative impact on the local environment.
Thomas O’Dwyer of Graigue, Thurles, told the council “Coolmore, the Magnier family and associated companies like Marmoris Limited, as of 2024, control almost 11,000 acres of agricultural land in Co. Tipperary.
He said: “We can acknowledge their willingness to help Ireland offset its CO2 emissions and develop green energy solutions to power our homes, schools and businesses.
He added: “However why was this recently purchased Killough Castle farm selected over and above the other almost 11,000 acres of land in their ownership, particularly when this site is lacking the infrastructure to connect to the power grid to make it operationally viable?”
Alice Coman of Moycarkey Village, Thurles told the Council that the application “creates a conflict for farm output. The Golden Vale is traditionally used for food output. This should get priority and brown field sites with good road and waste infrastructures should be considered as an alternative”.
Planning consultants for the scheme, Fehily Timoney told the Council that the project is led by Coolmore Stud “and is designed to complement Coolmore’s environmental and sustainability initiatives while benefiting the local community and contributing to Ireland’s renewable energy targets”.
