Danone Secures Approval for 6 MW Solar Installation at Macroom Site

According to the corrected Irish Examiner report, Cork County Council approved a ground-mounted photovoltaic array with an approximate capacity of 6 MW. The installation will comprise around 11,816 solar panels on a site covering approximately 11.43 hectares.

The medical nutrition project is subject to a separate planning application. As reported on August 27, a decision on that application had not yet been made.

If approved, the proposed facility could open in late 2028 and reach full operation by mid-2031. It would manufacture specialised liquid nutritional products for medical use, including products for cancer patients, people recovering from strokes and those affected by frailty.

Danone’s existing Macroom operations form part of its Nutricia production network, which supplies infant-formula brands including Aptamil and Cow & Gate. The proposed medical nutrition development would broaden the site’s activities beyond powdered infant formula.

An earlier version of this article referred to approval for the medical nutrition facility. The approval relates to the solar installation; the separate application for the medical nutrition facility was still awaiting a decision.