Key appointments boost electricity project

Greenlink Interconnector Limited, which has planned a 500MW, 200km underground electricity interconnector between Ireland and Wales, has appointed Tim Cowhig to its board of directors and Johnny Shine to its management committee.

Mr Cowhig, a long-time champion of the Irish renewable energy sector, was CEO of Element Power Ireland until its sale in 2018, CEO of SWS and chair of the Irish Wind Energy Association.

Johnny Shine is the former deputy chief executive of ESB, Ireland’s state-owned electricity utility. He has had an extensive and successful career across the energy and telecoms sectors and was most recently managing director of eir Networks.

Angus Norman, interim programme director, said: “We are delighted to bring on board two more highly-respected figures from the Irish energy sector – Johnny Shine and Tim Cowhig – who have exceptional strategic skills and experience of developing energy infrastructure in Ireland and abroad.

“These appointments follow the arrival in May of new investors, Partners Group, acting on behalf of their clients, and the recent appointment of Padraig McManus. It means we have a strong team and a firm financial footing upon which to take the project forward to the key milestones of planning consent and construction.”

Procurement for the major construction contracts for the project is well advanced.

The project is expected to have a three-year construction programme, leading to commissioning in 2023.

By Rebecca Jeffrey