Echelon Data Centres will establish Ireland’s first Green Energy Park at its DUB20 data centre campus in Arklow, Co. Wicklow, marking a major milestone in the delivery of the Irish Government’s Large Energy Users Action Plan (LEAP).
Green Energy Parks (GEPs), as defined by the Dept of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, are developments that co-locate large energy users such as data centres with renewable energy generation.
They are required to be primarily powered by renewables with battery storage or dispatchable backup from energy centres, able to demonstrate reduced reliance on the national grid, and promote innovation and system-wide benefits such as using waste heat for district heating schemes.
The Arklow Green Energy Park comprises Echelon’s DUB20 data centre; a new shared 220kV electricity substation connecting the data centre and SSE’s 800MW Arklow Bank Wind Park 2 offshore wind project; on-site solar energy generation; and on-site battery storage. It will also have grid-supporting energy infrastructure.
The government’s LEAP initiative sets out a plan-led pathway to identify and enable Green Energy Parks, including measures such as flexible or hybrid grid connections, private wire connections, and routes for corporate power purchase agreements (CPPAs) with offshore wind generation.
The Arklow Green Energy Park at Echelon’s DUB20 campus is being designed in direct alignment with this framework. It will include a data centre located close to the grid connection point for 800MW of large-scale renewable generation currently in development; two on-site energy centres, including one capable of exporting power to the national grid; and battery energy storage systems that use hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) to reduce emissions.
Together, these elements reflect the core characteristics of Green Energy Parks identified by Government: renewable-led supply, storage integration, demand flexibility and meaningful contribution to grid stability.
Responsible data centre development
The DUB20 campus, which forms part of Echelon’s €4.2 billion investment in the DUB20 and DUB30 facilities in Wicklow, is located at the former Irish Fertilisers Industries site at the Avoca River Business Park in Arklow. Due to be completed by 2028, it represents a major regeneration project for the region and positions Arklow as the first live example of a government-aligned Green Energy Park under development in Ireland.
An independent Economic Impact Assessment by KPMG found that the DUB20 and DUB30 campuses could generate up to €7.5 billion in economic output during construction and €801m annually once operational. The assessment also found that every €1 invested could yield €1.60 in wider economic activity, with thousands of jobs, supported during both construction and operation.
Echelon chief strategy officer Graeme McWilliams said: “Creating Ireland’s first Green Energy Park at DUB20 demonstrates how large-scale digital infrastructure can be developed responsibly and in lockstep with national climate and energy policy.
“By co-locating data centre capacity with offshore wind, onsite solar and grid-supporting infrastructure, we are delivering the exact model envisioned under the Government’s LEAP framework – cutting emissions, reinforcing energy security and supporting regional economic growth.”
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