Locals are objecting to plans by a John Magnier backed firm to erect a solar farm on a 549 acre site at Killough in south Tipperary.
Last month, Marmoris Limited, trading as Killough Solar, lodged the planning application with Tipperary County Council which followed Mr Magnier’s Coolmore Stud paying out a reported €6.5 million for Killough Castle and an accompanying estate of 527 acres in the early part of last year.
The documentation said that Killough Solar would create 80 to 100 jobs during the anticipated 18-month construction phase for the solar farm 6.5km south of Thurles.
In the planning application, Marmoris i sought a 10-year planning permission for 745,168 sq metres of solar panels in the town lands of Killough, Clohoge and Graigue, Co Tipperary.
Over 30 submissions have been lodged with the council and in one, Margaret Byrne, said that she had “several serious concerns” regarding the proposed development.
Ms Byrne, of Moycarkey, Thurles, said that the proposed development would have a significant negative impact on the local environment.
She said that “the change of use of excellent farmland producing food to an industrial solar farm set in a rural area where the present infrastructure (roads) are so narrow [that] two cars can hardly pass each other.”
Shane Nolan and Sharon Slattery of Forgestown, Moycarkey, Thurles, in their submissions said that “families who have made the area their home face the possibility of their homes losing value due to the impact of the development”.
Thomas O’Dwyer of Graigue, Thurles, told the council that “Coolmore, the Magnier family and associated companies like Marmoris Limited, as of 2024, control almost 11,000 acres of agricultural land in Co. Tipperary.
“We can acknowledge their willingness to help Ireland offset its CO2 emissions and develop green energy solutions to power our homes, schools and businesses.
“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 said in her submission 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, said 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”.
