It could be 2030 before Dublin Airport gets planning permission to grow passenger numbers to 40 million, Kenny Jacobs, head of DAA, has told the Sunday Business Post.
In the meantime, the airport will welcome 20,000 fewer tourists for St Patrick’s Day celebrations this week as capacity constraints at the airport continue, he said. In recent weeks Mr Jacobs has spoken to two big US airlines who “can’t get their head around the winter cap” that is currently in place.
Mr Jacob’s warning comes as Darragh O’Brien, the new transport minister, is to meet attorney general Rossa Fanning in the coming days to find a “viable but sustainable” solution to removing the passenger cap, the Business Post can confirm.
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Taoiseach Micheál Martin will cite the contribution of big Irish-based companies like Ryanair and Aercap in defence of Ireland’s trade surplus with the US, when he meets US president Donald Trump on Wednesday in Washington DC, the Sunday Business Post is reporting.
Officials at the Department of Foreign Affairs have drawn up an extensive document outlining Ireland’s economic footprint in the US, which shows there are 203,000 employees in Irish-owned companies in the US. Companies identified as having a big footprint already in the US by officials include Eaton, Kingspan, and Kerry Group.
Meanwhile a report in the Sunday Times says Michael McGrath, Ireland’s European commissioner, has warned President Trump that the EU will respond “swiftly and firmly” if the US acts on his threat of a trade war.
The Sunday Independent is also reporting on how the Taoiseach plans to keep Mr Trump onside which it describes as the biggest diplomatic offensive in the US in decades.
Distillers close the tap on whiskey production amid global glut
Irish Distillers has put the brakes on construction of a new project at its Midleton base and announced a pause in whiskey production as the industry experiences a global slowdown in demand, the Sunday Times report.
The Pernod Ricard unit told the paper the timeline on €250 million expansion, which was due to be operational this year, “has evolved”. Bushmills and John Teelings Great Northern Distillery have also cut back on production.
Student accommodation portfolio review
Global Student Accommodation (GSA), the biggest provider of Student accommodation in Ireland, is considering the possible sale or recapitalisation of part of its Irish portfolio, valued at €500 million, according to the Sunday Times. GSA operates 4,000 beds in 10 properties in Ireland, including 2,000 in Dublin under the Yugo brand that are subject to the latest review.
West Cork Distillers hopes Kentucky operation will cushion blow of likely US tariffs
An Irish whiskey firm is hoping a new bulk distribution centre in the United States will help it mitigate against the potential hit of US tariffs on the EU as global trade tensions continue to swirl, the Sunday Independent is reporting.
John O’Connell, co-founder of West Cork Distillers, said the potential for Trump trade tariffs on the EU would impact on the company, though the severity would depend on whether they were blanket or focused on specific trade codes.
Auto-enrolment looks likely to miss latest deadline
The chances of auto-enrolment – the compulsory workplace pension regime – going live by its latest deadline of September this year are receding, firms in the professional and services sectors believe amid a series of missed deadlines and a reported lack of stakeholder engagement by the Department of Social Prtotection. The Sunday Times reports on growing doubts that the necessary infrastructure can be put in place in the next six months.
