Danish energy giant Ørsted has joined forces with Irish renewable energy developer Terra Solar to develop a solar portfolio of up to 400MW in Ireland.

The solar projects are expected to be completed before 2030, subject to consent for the grid route and grid offers. They will help supply clean energy to more than 90,000 households.

Potential market routes for the portfolio include future auctions under the renewable electricity support scheme as well as corporate power purchase agreements.

The projects align with Ireland’s 8GW solar energy goal as part of its climate action plan.

Ørsted presently operates 378MW of onshore wind farms in Ireland, which generate sufficient energy for more than 230,000 homes. The company is also developing two other solar projects.

Earlier this year, it partnered with Irish energy company ESB to co-develop an offshore wind portfolio in the country.

Last week, Ørsted announced that it will invest in One Earth, a 740MW solar plant with associated battery energy storage in the UK. Being co-developed by PS Renewables, the project is expected to generate enough clean energy to meet the needs of around 200,000 homes.

It marked Ørsted's entrance into the UK solar sector.

Commenting on the latest alliance, Ørsted UK & Ireland development & operations senior director TJ Hunter said: “We are delighted to extend our existing collaboration with Terra Solar on the development of these projects, which will contribute to Ørsted’s global goal of 17.5GW of onshore renewables by 2030.”

Terra Solar director André Fernon said: “With a combined capacity of up to 400MW, this partnership will contribute significantly to Ireland’s low-carbon future, strengthen our indigenous energy supply and ensure competitively priced green electricity for Irish consumers.”