Grocery retailer Lidl has opened one of the State’s biggest distribution centres in Mullingar, equivalent in size to nine Aviva Stadiums or four Croke Parks, on the back of an €80-million investment.
The “newly extended” facility at Robinstown will lead to the creation of 100 new jobs and will increase the capacity of the German retailer’s facility to around 62,000 square metres, making it one of the largest buildings in the State.
It is part of a €550-million Irish expansion plan, first announced by the company in 2021.
Originally built in 2008 to service stores in the north Dublin, the midlands and the northwest, the Mullingar centre has expanded over the past 10 years to keep up with the retailer’s growing Irish footprint.
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The expansion allows Lidl to increase capacity by one third, serving its network of 177 stores across the State.
Lidl said it invested €1 million in a football-pitch-sized rooftop solar panel array consisting of almost 3,000 panels, which reduces its carbon output by some 220 tonnes annually, enough to power more than 218 homes each year.
“We are delighted to officially open our new state-of-the-art facility today as evidence of our ongoing investment and commitment to the Irish food sector and to Westmeath. The newly expanded distribution centre will now be Lidl’s largest distribution centre on the island, equivalent in size to approximately nine Aviva stadiums,” Alan Barry, chief development officer at Lidl Ireland and Northern Ireland, said.
Peter Burke, Minister of State for European Affairs and Defence, who was born in Mullingar and represents the people of Longford-Westmeath, said: “This is a momentous occasion for Mullingar and the Irish food industry as we celebrate the inauguration of this outstanding facility.”
