Drogheda Port Company has announced it is to develop a new deepwater port, to be located on the Meath coast north of Bremore Head, that will support Ireland’s Climate Action and EU Green Deal targets and act as a national logistics hub.
The new port is set to be one of the largest national infrastructure projects in recent years, will drive green innovation to support Ireland’s climate action targets, and will create a critical logistics hub that will deliver much needed sustainable jobs in the north east, the Drogheda Port Company said.
Paul Fleming, Drogheda Port Company CEO, said: “This project is a reflection of today’s policy demands for infrastructure that meets national and EU goals to decarbonise transport, to produce alternative energy sources and to build in a sustainable manner. We will also develop the scope and design of the project to meet the demands of the regional economy and the needs of the local community.”
“Ireland’s relationship with our nearest neighbour is changing fundamentally and Brexit requires us to reimagine the east-west trading environment as well as our direct infrastructure links to our EU partners. This project will add significant capacity and opportunity to Ireland’s existing infrastructure and will shape our economic development and trade policies for decades to come.”
“This announcement allows the project partners to start a public consultation to develop a socially, economically and environmentally sustainable project. Discussions are underway with relevant government departments to progress the necessary consents in terms of public policy objectives. In accordance with the Public Spending Code, a Strategic Assessment Report will be submitted to the relevant departments to progress this engagement further in the near term.”
Drogheda Port Company also announced it has, after a public procurement process, completed a partnership agreement with Ronan Group Real Estate (RGRE) to develop the port and the wider port estate. The partnership provides for a mixed development project that will maximise the socio- economic potential of the area based on proximity to a deepwater port, the Dublin/Belfast rail line and the national motorway network. The partners have assembled a team to support the development through the government consenting, public consultation and planning processes.
The Bremore development will provide additional capacity to current port services located at Drogheda, which will continue to develop with the construction of the Northern Port Access Route and the publication of a Drogheda Port Masterplan in early 2021.
Bremore Port - Phase one as released by Drogheda Port Company
Rory Williams, RGRE CEO, added: “This project will be one of Ireland’s biggest infrastructure investments in many years. As well as port and logistics operations, the development will make a significant contribution to regional social and economic infrastructure, delivering sustainable jobs to the region and providing a much needed shot in the arm for the Irish economy as it faces into the challenges of a post-pandemic and post Brexit world. The north east rarely features in national conversations on infrastructure and economic development, and so this will also bring much needed investment to a region that will benefit hugely.”
To be delivered in partnership with the private sector, the new Bremore Port will:
- Act as the landing site, assembly point and support centre for the turbines that will power the off-shore wind farms being developed in the Irish Sea;
- As part of being a major Irish hub for green innovation become a hub for the production and distribution of ‘green hydrogen’ – a ground-breaking zero-carbon energy source that has the potential to contribute significantly to Ireland’s climate action goals and power needs;
- Be one of the biggest infrastructure projects, portside and landside, undertaken in Ireland in recent years and funded primarily through private means;
- Drive regional social and economic infrastructural development by delivering sustainable jobs to the local economy, on the port estate and across the wider property development;
- Bring much-needed resilience to Ireland’s port infrastructure which will help to mitigate disruptions in international trade and logistics from events like Brexit;
- Offer competitive choice to shipping lines to develop and future proof their business sustainably in a central but uncongested location;
- Allow for the latest generation of technology in construction and operation as Ireland’s newest port;
- Become the logistics hub of the north-east region by offering extensive warehousing and logistics services right beside the M1 serving the entire island though the motorway and rail network.
