Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 23 February 2023
76. Deputy David Stanton asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of inquiries made in respect of the IDA Ireland site in Ballyadam, Carrigtwohill, County Cork, in 2021, 2022 and to date in 2023; the reason the site is not being developed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9018/23]
View answerThe Minister will be very aware of the IDA Ireland site in Ballyadam in Carrigtwohill, which is known as the former Amgen site. It has been lying idle now for the last 17 years.
It is probably one of the best resourced and serviced sites in the country, with a motorway on one side, a rail line on the other, and Cork Airport, the Port of Cork, plenty of third level institutions, employment and so on nearby. It has been lying idle for 17 years. Why is it not being developed? How many site visits have there been in the past while?
I know the site well. I drive past it regularly. It has extraordinary potential. It is known locally as the Amgen site because there was an expectation that there would be a significant development there quite some time ago now. However, the site still has significant potential.
The availability of quality business parks and strategic sites, coupled with advance building solutions, is a critical component of the regional value proposition and winning of investments into the regions, particularly outside of Dublin. The 56 ha site in Ballyadam, Carrigtwohill, is part of the IDA's overall strategic land portfolio in Cork and is available to support FDI clients.
The site was historically designated as a strategic site for development of a large-scale, stand-alone industrial enterprise and was reserved for this purpose in the previous local area plan. IDA Ireland acknowledged that this represented a constraint that precluded the consideration of any industrial or other employment-generating development project on the lands at Ballyadam unless it was a stand-alone, high-quality industrial development that occupied the entire site. The IDA made a formal submission in respect of an amendment to the Cobh municipal district draft local area plan to enable future flexibility in the development of the lands. IDA Ireland supported the deletion of that restriction and the adoption of a more flexible specific objective for the lands at Ballyadam.
The site is adjacent to the N25, which is a national primary route. The proximity of the site to the N25 and the planned provision of an interchange are significant factors in enhancing the attractiveness of the site as a location for FDI projects.
I am assured by the IDA that it is committed to the promotion of the lands at Ballyadam for development for employment-generating uses consistent with its development brief. The amendment to the local area plan affecting these lands, with the omission of the constraint limiting their development to a stand-alone industrial user and the planned provision of the grade-separated interchange on the N25 adjacent to the subject lands, will serve to enhance the prospects of realising this objective.
Additional information not given on the floor of the House
There has been significant property activity involving the site over recent years, which has included land discussions with EirGrid to support the Celtic interconnector project, engagement with Cork County Council on the proposed M25 upgrade and the associated potential land requirement to facilitate same. IDA Ireland has also engaged in future-proofing the land bank for development, which included planning permission for a new vehicular access and internal road network within the site to support potential investment in advance of any upgrade to the N25 road network. This project included extensive consultation with all relevant stakeholders, including Cork County Council and various utility providers.
I thank the Minister, but he did not tell me how many inquiries about the site had been made in the past while. I was told in 2015 by the then Minister, Deputy Bruton, that there had been four significant inquiries, but these did not come to anything.
Is it not a fact that the road infrastructure deficit is the main reason the site is not being developed? Does the Minister agree with Mr. Martin Shanahan, the former head of the IDA, who told me at a committee meeting more than a year ago that this was the case and that the road needed to be upgraded? Is it not a disgrace that the project has been long-fingered or cancelled by the Government? The site has lain idle for 17 years despite millions of euro being invested in it. Given the shortage of such sites in the country, is it not time that the Government decided to upgrade the road so that the site can be developed properly?
How many inquiries have been made into the site in recent years?
I would not like to give the impression that this part of east Cork is not getting attention from the IDA. Last May, Merck announced an investment of approximately €440 million to increase membrane manufacturing capacity at its site in Carrigtwohill. This investment included an extra 370 jobs. Last July, Stryker officially opened a new high-tech facility with the creation of 600 jobs. Last September, AbbVie announced an investment of €60 million with the creation of 70 jobs. Last October, GE Healthcare announced an expansion worth €30 million with the creation of 140 jobs. All of this happened in the area in question.
East Cork is a highly competitive place globally in terms of attracting FDI. The close proximity to Cork Airport, a highly skilled workforce across the Cork region, and the Government's €200 million investment in the rail network between Cork and Midleton and Cork and Cobh are a help. That said, this strategic site is a priority for me and the IDA. It would be a significant help if we could upgrade the road infrastructure in and around the site, as accessing the site is difficult. I will continue speaking to the Minister for Transport about this matter.
I thank the Minister, but we are way over time.
I thank the Minister for acknowledging that the road infrastructure is a major problem. That a significant amount of money was spent on planning its upgrade but it was pulled at the last minute is of concern to me and local people, not only because of the Amgen site, but because of the dangerous road and the fact that the plan for thousands of more houses in the area could be put at risk because of the poor road infrastructure.
How many inquiries were made into the site in each of the past number of years? There were at least four in 2015. I acknowledge the great work that the IDA is doing in the area and I agree with the Minister in that regard. I visited the sites and companies in question. They are all high-tech, high-spec and great companies that employ many people on good wages and provide good prospects. The IDA is doing a marvellous job, but the site in question has been sitting idle for 17 years. It is one of the best serviced sites in the country, so it is a disgrace that we cannot move it forward. How many inquiries have there been?
I will see if I can get that number for the Deputy. I am not sure if I am supposed to give out information on the areas in respect of which the IDA has received inquiries, the number of inquiries and the number of visits, but I will give the Deputy any information on the issue that I can. I will correspond with him in that regard. He and I discuss the site constantly. We must try to find a way to move it forward. Regardless of whether it becomes a site for multiple companies to develop on or just one large player, it is a large site at 68 ha. If it were to be filled by a single large investment, it would need to be an enormous investment. We thought that was going to happen, of course. Unfortunately, it did not.
A portion of the site has been used for the interconnector with France, the related grid management system and so on. All of that is useful, but this is a site in a perfect location that is well served. It would be significantly helpful if we could get the road upgrade that was committed to. In budgetary terms, it seems that will not happen this year, but we need to work on bringing investment forward on the N25 generally as soon as we can.
