Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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164. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment to indicate the extent to which an industrial park for Kilcock, County Kildare continues to be considered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43881/24]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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Regional development is a key element of Government's enterprise policy, as set out in the White Paper on Enterprise, and is a key focus of the work of my Department and our Agencies.

The availability of property and infrastructure solutions is a key factor in investment decisions and a robust property and infrastructure ecosystem can be the key differentiator in winning Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) projects. To this end, IDA Ireland’s Regional Property Programme is aimed at supporting economic development and job creation across the country by providing property solutions for its own as well as Enterprise Ireland and LEO clients.

Accordingly, the provision of property solutions is a key element in IDA’s marketing of all regions, including the Mid-East Region. IDA actively promotes available buildings and land in IDA’s portfolio along with high-quality buildings available in private ownership through its network of overseas offices. In this regard, I should note that the Mid-East Region comprises of counties Kildare, Louth, Meath and Wicklow and there are 118 IDA client companies in this region, employing 20,429 people.

In relation to IDA property and industrial parks, the ongoing replenishment of stock is essential to ensure the IDA portfolio remains fit for purpose and demonstrates longevity. As client requirements evolve, there is a necessity for the IDA to have serviceable site solutions available to support the investment plans of IDA, Enterprise Ireland and Local Enterprise Office clients. IDA Ireland continues to maintain a focus on land banks and strategic sites to future proof the ability of the property portfolio to support the project pipeline, and on that basis actively pursues acquisition opportunities in County Kildare, and nationally, through engagement with local authorities, consultants, agents, utility providers and other regional stakeholders.

On that basis, in 2019, IDA acquired a significant landbank of c. 87 ha at Littleconnell, Newbridge Co. Kildare. In July 2024, the sod was turned on a new €200m brewery on part of these lands by Diageo, demonstrating the importance of such site solutions. In addition, the IDA acquired a further 9.3 ha site at Walshtown, Newbridge, Co. Kildare in 2023 to future proof the portfolio in this region. However, there are no land acquisition opportunities being pursued by IDA Ireland in Kilcock at present.

The FDI performance in the region has been consistent over the past five years with employment among IDA clients increasing by 14%. The Mid-East has a significant ecosystem of well-established companies across Technology, Life Sciences, International Financial Services and Engineering & Industrial Technologies. It has also won significant investment in the Food and the Film sub-sectors. Key IDA client companies in the region include Intel, Takeda, PCI, Wuxi Biologics, Servier, Elavon, Merck, Becton Dickinson, Cargotec, Kaseya, Prometric, ABB, Paypal and Vesta. Counties in the Mid-East also benefit hugely from the direct and indirect employment generated by IDA client companies located in Dublin.