Maritime Development Office backs €100m Ringaskiddy plan

The Irish Maritime Development Office, operating under the auspices of the Department of Transport, has given its backing to the Port of Cork’s plans for a €100m-plus upgrade of its deep water container facilities at Ringaskiddy.

IMDO director Liam Lacey told an An Bord Pleanála hearing yesterday that the port’s plans are consistent with government policy, will be “beneficial to the local and national economy”, and are “necessary to meet market demands”.

He said the upgrade will “improve national competitiveness, stimulate international trade, attract foreign direct investment and as a result create jobs in the region and the wider economy”.

According to Mr Lacey, the National Ports Policy identifies the Cork, Dublin, and Shannon- Foynes ports as tier-one facilities delivering the capacity required to sustain the future economic growth of the country.

“Equally important, at European level, the Port of Cork is recognised as a key infrastructural node on one of the key EU transport corridors.”

Mr Lacey said both designations place an onus on the Port of Cork to be conscious of the future needs of the country’s trading economy and “to take sensible and proportionate steps to meet future demands for port capacity”.

He said the IMDO believes the Ringaskiddy plan is sensible and proportionate and if not undertaken would “damage national competitiveness and inhibit the capacity of the Irish economy to grow and to create jobs”.

He said the country’s ports were of great importance because they handle more than 90% of the country’s international trade.

“In order to overcome the dis-advantages of being an island nation, relatively remote from our trading partners, we must have high-performing, efficient, and competitive ports. The development at Ringaskiddy will allow the Port of Cork to take an important step towards achieving the sort of efficiency that is required,” Mr Lacey said.

He said Ringaskiddy had room for port expansion because the depth of water was enough to accommodate larger vessels, which was not the case at the quays or Tivoli docks.