Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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150. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he will provide a full updated brief on the Narrow Water Bridge project, including expected commencement dates, expected funding requirements and expected funding schemes which will be utilised to progress the long-awaited project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3239/23]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The Narrow Water Bridge is a cross-border project led by Louth County Council and supported by the Shared Island Fund, which is designed to fund strategic north-south projects that implement the commitments and objectives on Shared Island set out in the Programme for Government. The bridge will connect Cornamucklagh near Omeath, Co Louth with Narrow Water near Warrenpoint, Co. Down.

Following a Government decision in June 2021, then Taoiseach Micheál Martin announced the approval of an initial €3m from the Shared Island Fund to take the project forward to tender stage. This work was led by Louth County Council and overseen by my Department in this jurisdiction, and the Department of Infrastructure in Northern Ireland.

On 18 November 2022, Government further approved the seeking of tenders for the Main Works Contract, marking a major milestone in terms of progress on the project. Final funding requirements for the project will not be determined until the tender process is complete, with funding for future years to be determined once firm costings are available.

To date there have been 10 meetings of the Narrow Water Bridge Sub Group to progress this project the most recent on 29 September 2022.

The most recent meeting of the North South (NS) Senior Officials Group (SOG) on New Decade New Approach (NDNA) for Infrastructure and Investment was on the 23 November 2022.