Board to hold oral hearing on €226m terminal plan

AN BORD PLEANÁLA is to hold an oral hearing next month into plans by the Port of Cork to build a €226 million cargo terminal at Ringaskiddy.

The planning appeals board has received up to 500 submissions, including one from port authorities in Waterford, which Port of Cork chief executive Brendan Keating described yesterday as “vexatious”.

“If Cork doesn’t proceed with this project, then the region will be disadvantaged. We already handle a lot more container traffic than Waterford,” he added.

The oral hearing will get under way at the Cork International Airport Hotel on April 2, and could take three weeks to complete.

Mr Keating said the port authority is seeking approximately €58m in compensation to vacate the Docklands area, which is earmarked for major redevelopment.

Between the city quays and Tivoli the port authority owns 174 acres of valuable land. Mr Keating said €58m represented the cost of replacing city operations, and Port of Cork expects to be compensated by Cork City Council and developers to move to Ringaskiddy.

The Port of Cork believe it’s essential to build new container terminals in Ringaskiddy to handle the ever increasing size of ships.

Tivoli docks can handle ships up to 155 metres. The planned terminal could manage ships twice as long

The port said it had looked at the old IFI plant at Marino Point, near Cobh, but found it unsuitable for a deep water terminal.

Cork County Council planners told port officials the road network in the area would not be able to cope with heavy traffic generated by the project. The port’s chief executive stated it was vital the N28 between Cork and Ringaskiddy be upgraded to coincide with the opening of the new cargo terminals, planned for 2012.

It’s hoped a decision on the Ringaskiddy plans will be made by June 3.