Joe Cooney (Clare, Fine Gael)
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358. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will provide an update on efforts by his Department, in conjunction with Clare County Council, the IDA, Enterprise Ireland and Clare County Council to secure new enterprise for the former Roche site in Clarecastle, County Clare. [15606/25]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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IDA Ireland has been working closely with Roche, since their decision to close the Clarecastle facility in 2015. IDA Ireland had actively marketed the site through its extensive overseas network to both existing and new investors as a going concern which unfortunately yielded no offers.

Roche has commenced remediation works at the site which represents a significant investment in preparing the site for the future but that will take a number of years to complete. As part of this, the company is developing digital promotional material on the plans for the site which can be shared with potential investors.

The Roche site is identified as a key strategic site in the Ennis 2040 Economic and Spatial Strategy. In July 2023 Roche held an event, attended by stakeholders including the IDA, where the company presented a letter to Clare County Council offering the Council the benefit of a right of first refusal in respect of the site, when remediation works are complete.

I am advised that IDA is continually engaging with Roche Senior Executives on the progress of the remediation and decommissioning of the site. The most recent engagement was the week of the 17th of February 2025 with Clare County Council and Roche in Basel, Switzerland. Likewise, Enterprise Ireland continue to be updated by Clare County Council on the progression of the remediation project and when the site will be available for future investment. I am further advised that the most recent Ennis 2040 meeting took place with Enterprise Ireland and the IDA on 14 March along with a tour of the current site.

IDA and Enterprise Ireland are working closely with Clare County Council to identify potential investment opportunities for the site. Also, notwithstanding that the site is not in their ownership, IDA Ireland continues to proactively market the site through its extensive overseas network to both existing and new investors.

Joe Cooney (Clare, Fine Gael)
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359. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of foreign direct investment (FDI) jobs created in Clare, Galway, north Tipperary and Limerick in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024, in tabular form; the number of FDI jobs created and lost respectively in Clare, Galway, north Tipperary and Limerick in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15607/25]

Joe Cooney (Clare, Fine Gael)
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360. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will provide a breakdown of IDA Ireland visits to Clare, Galway, north Tipperary and Limerick in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. [15608/25]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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The IDA Mid-West Region comprises counties Limerick, Clare, and Tipperary. There are 153 IDA client companies in the Mid-West Region, employing 27,968 people. Galway is in the IDA West Region (along with Mayo and Roscommon), there are 104 IDA supported companies in Galway City and County, employing 24,118 in total.

The FDI performance in these regions has been consistent over the past five years with employment among IDA clients increasing by 16% in the Mid- West, and 14% in the West.

There is a significant ecosystem of well-established companies across Technology, Life Sciences, International Financial Services and Engineering & Industrial Technologies in these regions. The number of people employed in software engineering, technical support, global business services and RD&I in this areas has also grown considerably in recent years.

As requested by the Deputy, the table below outlines the number FDI jobs created and lost for Clare, Limerick, Tipperary and Galway over the period 2019 to 2024

IDA Ireland's new Strategy, "Adapt Intelligently: A Strategy for Sustainable Growth and Innovation", which I launched in February, is targeting 550 from a total of 1,000 investments over the lifetime of the strategy to the regions. This ambitious target will require continued investment in IDA’s Regional Property Programme for companies locating significant operations here. The availability of suitable property and strategic sites is a critical component of the regional value proposition and to the winning of investments into the regions from both new name clients and from the existing client base.

IDA’s property strategy aims to address regional market failure through investment in enterprise-focused property solutions that meet the needs of MNCs and indigenous clients in support of winning investments. IDA maintains a focus on acquisition of new land banks and strategic sites to future proof the ability of the property portfolio in regional locations to support the project pipeline. This targeted forward planning is vital to provide certainty and ensure Ireland has a competitive offering that meets the evolving needs of IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland clients.

Data on site visits is available on a county basis and as requested by the Deputy, the number of IDA facilitated visits to counties Clare, Limerick, Tipperary and Galway throughout 2019- 2024 is set out in tabular form below:

It should be noted, however, that IDA site visits are only one measure of a company’s interest in a particular location and may not necessarily be a true measure of the overall level of foreign direct investment (FDI) activity in a region or county. For example, 70% of FDI won by IDA Ireland in 2024 came from its existing client base, rather than new companies.

It should also be noted that the final decision on where to locate an investment is always decided by the client, and not by IDA Ireland, and it can take many years to convert from initial site visit to final project proposal. Regular engagement and collaboration with stakeholders are important in positioning any regional location to attract FDI and, in this respect, IDA Ireland continues to engage with stakeholders as well as working with existing clients in all regional locations to generate additional employment.