The construction ofÌýIreland's largest biomass plantÌýis plannedÌýtoÌýbeginÌýlater in the month, announced the country'sÌýchiefÌýEnda Kenny on Sunday.
The â‚�180 million (about $275 million)Ìýproject will be located inÌýCounty Mayo,Ìýa county in the West of Ireland, and will be fuelled by woodchip biomass to generateÌýenough power for 68,000 homes.
TheÌý42 megawattÌýplant is expected to be up and running by 2017 and plans to provide 350 construction jobs over the next two years, according to Kenny.
ÌýMayo Renewable Power is undertaking the project, which isÌýbacked by U.S. investment company Weichert Enterprise, while financial assistance will alsoÌýcomeÌýfrom the Ulster Bank, Allied Irish BankÌýand Barclays.
“This investment is a vote of confidence in the Irish economy and is part of the recovery that is beginning to spread to every region of Ireland,� Kenny said.
Kenny stressed thatÌýthe largest biomass plant in the country "will contribute to reducing our greenhouse emissions."
Ireland targetsÌýmeeting 40 percentÌýof the country's electricity demand, 12 percentÌýof its heatÌýand 10 percentÌýof its transportÌýfrom renewable sources by 2020, according to the sustainable energy authority of Ireland.
By Zeynep Beyza Karabay
Anadolu Agency
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