In Ireland, the government has imposed no restriction on proximity of wind farms to shore. For this reason, developers have targeted sites that are significantly closer to shore than would be permitted in other EU countries.

Turbine distance to shore has changed with advances in technology. The seven turbines that were constructed 20 years ago in Phase One of the Arklow Bank development are 124 meters high, while turbine height for proposed developments are over 300 meters. (To put this into context, the blade of proposed turbines would be similar in length to the Dublin Spire, 121 meters high).

In the early stages of offshore wind development, it was a huge accomplishment to sink a turbine foundation into 10 meters of water. This explains why some early developments are located in shallow water relatively close to shore. Advancements in technology now allow turbine foundations to be installed in up to 70 meters of water and developers are already installing foundations at this depth. This, together with the introduction of floating turbine platforms, means that the majority of current EU and global offshore wind developments are located a minimum of 25 km from the shore.