Investors line up to bid for €200m waterfront city

SEVERAL international consortiums have already expressed an interest in developing the new €200 million Galway Port – which was given the backing of the majority of city councillors at a meeting last night.

During a two hour presentation and ‘questions and answers’ session with Council officials and elected representatives, executives of the Galway Harbour Company outlined their ‘visionary waterfront city’. Set to be developed in tandem with CIE’s land surrounding Ceannt Station, the entire site will encompass 175 acres.

Harbour Company CEO Eamon Bradshaw told councillors that by 2015, the first phase of the Docks plans will see up to 50 cruise liners dock in the city – with a projected passenger spend of around €40million per year.

And despite the economic downturn, Mr Bradshaw said: “We are currently evaluating our options [for funding the project]. The traditional type of company that would have been involved no longer exists. A number of international consortiums are quite interested in it as an international hub or as a ‘build and lease’.”

Projections for 2015 to 2030 also show the value of goods coming through the new Port rising from €4bn this year to €12bn, and an increase in staff at the Harbour Enterprise Park from 300 to 500.

The meeting was told that the new Port will consist of around 94 acres of land reclamation, and will extend around 1.4km out to sea. It will include two marinas, and in total, there will be 294 amenity berths, as well as 12 berths capable of facilitating Volvo Ocean Race scale of yachts.

The 3D presentation, using interactive Real SIM technology developed by the Business Innovation Centre at NUI Galway, gave councillors an overview of the project.

Councillors were told that following a public consultation period, an application will be lodged directly with An Bórd Pleanála under Strategic Infrastructure Development legislation, and it was hoped permission would be granted next October.

The first phase is expected to be completed by 2015, with the second phase by 2020. The plans also include a terminal building for the cruise liners, a ‘marine leisure’ port, nautical centre, cultural and performance areas, gallery, open spaces and pedestrianised walkways.

Continued on page 12 of this week’s Sentinel