Fair Winds Ahead
Stakeholder Forum Sets Course for PorterShed’s Renewables Hub
Stephen Geary
Funding Support Manager | PorterShed
On Monday 9th June, PorterShed welcomed a dynamic group of stakeholders to Galway for a pivotal Stakeholder Forum. Held on-site at PorterShed a Dó, the event marked a milestone in the development of the forthcoming Renewable Energy Innovation Hub at the Port of Galway, a space envisioned to catalyse innovation in the green and blue economies, foster regional resilience, and position the West of Ireland as a sustainability leader.
A Vision for the Western Region
The morning began with a warm welcome from Mary Rodgers, CEO of Galway City Innovation District, who provided background on PorterShed’s ecosystem-building journey since 2015. Now operating at full capacity, PorterShed is responding to the region’s growing need for collaborative innovation space by planning a new hub dedicated to climate and sustainability innovation.
The planned Renewables Hub aims to become a launchpad for startups and scaleups working in sustainability, clean-tech and the circular economy, supporting companies “solving real climate and energy challenges”. Funded by a Priming Grant under the, ERDF funded, Smart Regions Enterprise Innovation Fund from Enterprise Ireland, the project is currently undergoing a six-month planning phase, covering feasibility, stakeholder engagement, design scoping, and preparing a robust business case.
Mary Rodgers outlined four compelling reasons to build the hub in Galway: its unique marine and academic assets, a strong pipeline of green and digital startups, high demand for existing innovation space, and rising regional demand for flexible, mission-driven infrastructure.
A Forum Rooted in Collaboration
The day’s first highlight was a panel discussion featuring Mary Rodgers, Liam Curran (Enterprise Ireland), Majella Maher (Enterprise Ireland), and Javier Santiago (Sylvestris Sustainability Global). Together, they addressed the landscape of opportunities and challenges in the renewable energy space, setting the tone for the forum’s interactive sessions.
Attendees represented an inclusive cross-section of stakeholders: startups, academia, policy makers, investors, and industry leaders. Their collective insight was harnessed through four themed roundtable workshops, each introduced by a provocateur who framed the conversation.
The first workshop, titled “Needs and Supports”, and moderated by Finn Delaney (XOcean), explored the real-world challenges facing early-stage companies, from longer term capital gaps to complex regulations. The call was clear: startups need tailored mentorship, accessible R&D infrastructure, better access to funding, and stronger links with anchor institutions.
The second workshop, guided by Helena Deane (Marine Institute), focused on how the hub can deliver tangible benefits to the ecosystem and region. Attendees pointed to the opportunity to amplify the West’s global sustainability credentials, build on existing assets like MaREI and BlueWise Marine, and better connect academic, public, and private actors. Delegates suggested greater solidarity and cooperation across areas of mutual interest including on joint trade missions.
After lunch, the third workshop with Tomás Ó Síocháin (CEO of Údarás na Gaeltachta) as provocateur, highlighted the growth potential in green energy, including offshore wind, hydrogen, and grid innovation. This prompted a lively discussion on areas of policy, planning and aspects of our national power grid. One delegate highlighted the clear need to distinguish generation, transmission and distribution grid technologies, while others encouraged leveraging the adoption of electric vehicles for off-peak storage through vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technologies.
Our final workshop of the day was moderated by Cathal Heneghan (Meehan Green), and tackled what physical and programmatic elements the hub must deliver: co-working zones, wet and prototyping labs, event space, regulatory support, student engagement, and access to legal and financial expertise. Delegates debated the relative merits of various sustainable construction techniques, materials and technologies, including structural use of cross-laminated timber (CLT) as well as glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) bars. The importance of site selection, flood mitigation and other strategies was noted.
Toward a Shovel-Ready Hub
The insights from the forum are feeding directly into the planning phase, which aims to produce a shovel-ready blueprint for the new hub. If successful, the Renewables Hub will be more than just a building, it will be a community engine that drives economic, environmental, and social impact for Galway, and the West and North-West.
As one attendee commented, adapting existing models of incubation, with specialised mentoring, access to finance such as grants and equity investment, as well as guidance on tax incentives could be transformative for startups in this sector. The Renewables Hub will help startups and scaleups generate employment in fast-growing sectors such as offshore wind, hydrogen, ocean tech, and the circular economy, all industries identified as strategic opportunities during the Forum. As one attendee later remarked “…helping place Galway on the world sustainability map”.
By embracing collaboration across sectors and geographies, the Renewables Hub project exemplifies the kind of visionary, place-based innovation needed to meet the climate challenge head-on. If you’re working in sustainability or the blue or circular economies, we’d love to connect.
The Renewables Hub is more than a building, it’s a shared, sustainable vision for Galway and the region. We all have a role to play in making it happen. Join us on this journey by contributing your insights, priorities and ideas as we move toward a shovel-ready proposal.
Please get in touch with the PorterShed team today by emailing renewableshub@portershed.com
