Last week’s Energy in the Estuary Summit brought together leaders from government, industry, and international partners to explore how the Shannon Estuary and Ireland’s West Coast can power the nation’s clean energy future.
We were honoured to welcome Minister Timmy Dooley for our keynote address and Pat Keating, Shannon Foynes Port as our flagship speaker, who both underlined why the West Coast’s ports and infrastructure are pivotal to achieving Ireland’s renewable energy ambitions.
Across three powerful panels, discussions ranged from policy readiness and offshore infrastructure to investment, innovation, and international collaboration:
Panel 1: Is Ireland Ready for Offshore Renewable Energy?
Aisling Greene (DCEE – Principal Officer for Offshore, Environment and Future Development) · Michael Farrington (Department of Transport, Principal Officer ORE Ports Facilitation Division) · Killian Carroll (Irish Fiscal Advisory Council) · Moderator: Justin Moran (Director of External Affairs Wind Energy Ireland & a member of the Government’s Offshore Wind Delivery Taskforce).
Panel 2: Enabling the Transition
David Maher (Managing Director Ireland, H&MV Engineering) · Angela Larkin (Country Manager, Ocean Winds) · Moderator: Barry O’Sullivan (Shannon Estuary Economic Task Force) · Kieran Collins (Director, Infrastructure & Government, KPMG Ireland)
· Ian O’Hora (Head of Sustainability, IDA Ireland). Dr. David Hallinan, PhD (International Trade Dependencies & Energy Transition, NESC) & Karen O’Reilly (Head of Policy – Ireland, SSE Renewables) also participated in Panel 2.
Panel 3: Leading the Charge – The Role of International Collaboration in Achieving Our Ambition
Jeremy Mast (French Ministry of Environment for the UK & Ireland) · Jacques Vanhoucke (Trade & Investment Commissioner, Flanders Investment and Trade) · Wolfram von Heynitz (Deputy Head of Mission, German Embassy) · Nora Dessing (Deputy Head of Mission, Netherlands) · Yngve Olsen Hvoslef (Deputy Head of Mission, Norwegian Embassy) · Chris Thomson Thompson (Programme Director, Green Freeports & Investment Zones, Scottish Government) · Moderator: Michelle Gallagher, MBA (Limerick Chamber)
Sincere thanks to all of our speakers, moderators, sponsors, and delegates —to John Moran, Mayor of Limerick, Limerick City and County Council and Limerick Chamber President Mairead Connolly for their remarks and reflections on regional collaboration.
Plans are already underway for the Energy in the Estuary Summit Series 2025–2026, beginning in Dublin (March 2026) and returning to Limerick (September 2026) for our flagship Port to Power Summit.
If you’d like to get involved — as a sponsor, speaker, or partner — contact us at ceo@limerickchamber.ie.
Together, we’re moving from Port to Power — and from potential to progress.
