Powering the Farney: How a Carrickmacross Solar Company Became the Heartbeat of Monaghan GAA
Activ8 Solar Energies are the main sponsor of Monaghan GAA across all teams — and their story is one of the most remarkable business journeys in the county's history.
Activ8 Solar Energies are the main sponsor of Monaghan GAA across all teams — and their story is one of the most remarkable business journeys in the county's history.
When you look at the Monaghan GAA jersey in 2026 — white and blue, worn with pride from Clones to Croke Park — the name across the chest belongs to a company that was built right here in County Monaghan, by a Carrickmacross man, from scratch.
Activ8 Solar Energies are not a multinational drafted in from outside the county with a cheque. They are not a bank or a telecoms giant lending their logo to a jersey they have no emotional connection to. They are a Monaghan company. Born in Carrickmacross. Headquartered at NEXUS Business Park on the N2. Employing over 300 people. And proudly, deliberately, meaningfully the first Monaghan-based business to sponsor Monaghan GAA in over two decades.
That matters. It matters a lot.
The Activ8 Story: From One Van to Ireland's Largest Solar Company
Ciaran Marron founded Activ8 Solar Energies in 2007. At the time, residential solar in Ireland was a niche product — expensive, unfamiliar to most homeowners, and dependent on government incentive schemes that came and went with the wind. Nobody was thinking in terms of building a national solar company from rural Monaghan.
Ciaran Marron was.
By 2026, Activ8 has completed over 25,000 solar PV installations across Ireland — residential and commercial, north and south. The company has grown to over 300 staff operating nationally, with the NEXUS Business Park headquarters in Carrickmacross serving as the nerve centre. In 2026 alone, Activ8 won the Energy & Utilities category at the Guaranteed Irish Business Awards and took home the Green Energy Provider Award at the Green Business & Sustainability Awards — their second consecutive year receiving that honour. Ciaran Marron himself was recognised with the EY Entrepreneur of the Year award.
All of that. From Carrickmacross. From County Monaghan.
Why They Chose to Sponsor Monaghan GAA
The partnership between Activ8 and Monaghan GAA is not simply a commercial arrangement. This is a company run by people who grew up in this county, who follow the Monaghan team, who feel the Ulster final losses and the championship wins in exactly the same way as every other Farney supporter.
Crucially, the sponsorship package includes a specific commitment to player development at underage and minor level — annual investment in the strength, conditioning, and athletic development of young players coming through the Monaghan underage structures. This is not passive logo placement. It is active investment in the pipeline of talent that feeds from club football in the parishes all the way up to the senior panel.
The sponsorship spans all Monaghan GAA teams — not just the senior men's football panel, but the full range of county structures.
What Activ8 Does — and Why Monaghan Homeowners Should Know About It
For any homeowner in County Monaghan thinking about solar panels — and given energy prices over the past few years, that should be almost everyone — Activ8 Solar Energies are the most experienced, most established installer in Ireland, and they're based on your doorstep.
A residential solar PV installation from Activ8 involves a full survey, a system designed for your specific roof and energy demand, and a complete install — panels, inverter, mounting, and grid connection — typically in a single day for a standard domestic system. The company handles all relevant SEAI grant paperwork, which can significantly reduce the upfront cost.
The financial case for solar has changed dramatically. The Clean Export Guarantee means homeowners now receive payment from their electricity supplier for surplus energy exported to the grid. Combined with SEAI grants, a well-designed solar system can achieve payback periods that make genuine financial sense for the majority of Monaghan households.
For commercial properties — farms, businesses, industrial units — the financial case is often even stronger. With energy costs remaining a major overhead for any business, the return on investment conversation is increasingly straightforward.
A Solar Company in a County Built on Agriculture
There is something fitting about the county's main GAA sponsor being in the renewable energy business. Solar PV on a farm building roof has become one of the most sensible capital investments available to a Monaghan farmer, reducing electricity bills and generating a return on otherwise unused roofspace.
Activ8 understands that market. With their headquarters on the N2 at Carrickmacross, they are well-placed to serve the farming community across the whole of Monaghan and the border counties.
Supporting the Sponsor Who Supports Monaghan
The relationship between Activ8 Solar Energies and Monaghan GAA is a genuine community partnership — a Monaghan company investing in Monaghan sport, investing in young Monaghan athletes, investing in the structures that keep Gaelic games alive from Scotstown to Inniskeen.
If you are considering solar for your home or business in County Monaghan, there is a clear and obvious first call to make. Support the company that supports your county team.
📞 042-9690352 | 📧 info@activ8energies.com | 📍 NEXUS N2 Business Park, Carrickmacross
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