Donegal Co Council has indicated it will make a decision before February 20th on planning applications for three wind farm projects worth almost €63 million (£50m).
If approval is given, the wind farms will have a combined installed capacity of almost 50 megawatts.
They would bring Donegal's installed capacity from wind farm projects to more than 100 megawatts. According to the Irish Wind Energy Association, that is enough to supply about 60,000 households.
"Wind is now the cheapest form of electricity in Ireland and there is plenty of it," said Ms Inga Buckley, chairman of the IWEA.
Under the EU Renewable Energy Directive, the State has been set a target of generating 13.2 per cent of its electricity from renewable resources by 2010. At present, the figure is about 6 per cent.
The site for the biggest of the three planned wind farms is Corkermore, about seven kilometres inland from Killybegs.
Sligo-based Futuregen Ltd is seeking permission for the erection of 14 turbines - each the height of a 16-storey building (60m) and each with a rotor diameter of 62 metres.
An accompanying environmental impact statement estimates the cost at €22.8 million (£18m), with 15-20 people being employed during construction, and says that "the annual saving in global warming potential offered by the proposed wind farm is equivalent to over 105,617 tonnes of carbon dioxide".
Wind Farm Developments Ltd, of Larne, Co Antrim, part of the British McAlpine Group, is seeking permission for an extension to an existing wind farm at Cark, near Ballybofey.
It plans to erect up to 10 1.75MW turbines. According to the planning application, the landowners include the Irish Forestry Board. The estimated cost is €21.6 million (£17m).
Meanwhile, Dublin-registered Beam Wind Ltd, has applied for planning approval for eight turbines with a total installed capacity of 14MW, adjacent to the 4.8MW Drumlough Hill wind farm near Buncrana. It is costed at €17.8 million (£14m).
Donegal Ireland has seven operational wind farms, including the 15MW Barnesmore Gap development owned by Scottish Power.
And under the Government's latest initiative to promote green energy projects, Alternative Energy Requirement V (AER V), four more wind farms are earmarked for Donegal, including a 22.5MW project by Eirtricity, also at Cark.
With demand for electricity expected to rise considerably over the next decade, the role of wind energy looks set to become increasingly important, not least as the country attempts to meet its requirements under the Kyoto Agreement on harmful emissions.