Mr. Brian McGrath:

I thank the Chair. I am pleased to join the committee today. Foyle Port has a strategic location at the mouth of Lough Foyle. We are the primary marine gateway for the north west of Ireland for commerce and tourism and the largest bulk port operating in this region, and we handle around 2 million tonnes of cargo. We are a key economic driver for the region on both sides of the Border, where we handle around €1 billion of commodities each year, supporting around 1,000 direct and indirect jobs and 20,000 regional farms. In addition to our cargo operations, we are a major marine tourism asset for the region. Until the demise of the cruise industry through Covid, we had an increasing presence in that market for the international cruise industry.

Our jurisdiction covers about 180 sq.km, extending over the entirety of Lough Foyle on both sides, making us unique in the UK and Ireland in that sense. Our jurisdiction stretches from the Craigavon Bridge in Derry north to the line between Greencastle in County Donegal and Magilligan Point on the northern side. We have infrastructure and operations on both sides of the Border and are a truly cross-Border entity in that sense. We are a trust port operating independently of government. All our operations are self-financing, our profits are all reinvested for the benefit of the region and our stakeholders, and we have no shareholders.

In that context, I am delighted to meet the committee and explore how Foyle Port might play our part in that intergovernmental regional piece for the north west.