Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

IDA Ireland is committed to building a new advance technology building in Tralee. I know both Deputy Griffin and Councillor Jim Finucane, among others, have been working on the matter for some time, and the Deputy has raised it with me several times on the floor of the House.

The latest position is that IDA Ireland is continuing to engage with stakeholders to seek a suitable site for the proposed building in Tralee. Securing planning permission and the construction of the building will take time, but it is intended that the facility will be delivered during the life of the current IDA Ireland strategy either during or before 2024, whatever the case may be. The advance technology building may provide a new office for an investor or industrial investment given the flexible nature of IDA Ireland building solutions.

Provision of appropriate property and infrastructure to meet the needs of multinational companies remains essential to winning foreign direct investment, FDI. Advance technology buildings are designed to provide high-quality production and office accommodation for future manufacturing and technological businesses. They usually range from 25,000 to 30,000 square feet and are high-specification buildings, flexible in use, and provide office or industrial space or, in some cases, a combination of both. The buildings are completed to achieve leadership in energy and environmental design, LEED, accreditation where possible. Under the regional development pillar of its strategy, IDA Ireland aims to win investment to propel recovery and support development in every region of Ireland, targeting 400 investments outside Dublin by end of 2024.

IDA Ireland is actively encouraging investors to locate outside the Dublin area, be that through marketing potential investment sites outside the main cities or working to develop recognised industry clusters. The agency continues to engage with new companies on promoting Ireland as a location for their business and utilises virtual site visits as opposed to physically visiting the county. IDA Ireland will continue to position County Kerry to prospective companies in 2022 and beyond.

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