Denmark’s Orsted and ESB have signed an agreement to jointly develop an Irish offshore wind portfolio, the Danish wind energy group said in a statement.

Orsted will become a 50 per cent partner in a series of offshore wind development projects off Ireland’s coast, the company said.

The partnership has the potential to deliver up to 5 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy and complementary renewable hydrogen projects, it added.

The Government aims to generate 80 per cent of the State’s electricity from renewable sources, including to reach 5 GW offshore wind by 2030, the Minister for Enterprise, Simon Coveney, was quoted as saying.