IDA spent over €15K in office rent

The IDA spent more than €15,000 on office rents in Cavan last year. This was despite hosting no site visits with potential foreign direct investors (FDI) and shifting its engagement with clients to digital platforms as a result of the pandemic.

The IDA hosted two virtual site visits in Cavan in 2020, both in the final quarter.

A similar number of online scoping exercises were held in neighbouring Co Monaghan.

By comparison, in 2019, there were a total 11 site visits to Cavan and Monaghan, accounting for approximately one in five of all site visits to the North East region, which also takes in Co Louth.

Cavan experienced a record number of visits by potential FDI clients in the first nine months of 2019 with six visits, the most counted in a single year since records began.

But the introduction of travel restrictions worldwide disrupted the usual way in which the IDA engages investors, resulting in fewer in-person site visits and client meetings.

In response, IDA Ireland has established a suite of digital content to be accessed by potential investors.

The IDA spent €15,452 renting office space in Cavan in 2020. The cost has increased by more than 35% since 2018.

IDA Ireland does not currently rent land in Cavan, however the authority does own and actively market 6.05 hectares of development lands at Killygarry. Some of this land was sold to Breffni Air, which has since established its new multi-million euro industrial campus on sites six and seven.

The move is being supported by Enterprise Ireland and Cavan Local Enterprise Office.

Last year the IDA issued tenders for contractors to extend existing infrastructure within their Business & Technology Park near Cavan Town.

The works included 230 metres of additional road including footpaths, lighting and underground services. It followed planning permission granted for the development by the planning section of Cavan County Council.

The Killygarry business park is also home to ATA Tools.

There are currently eight IDA supported companies operating in Cavan, supporting more than 1,000 jobs, and seven companies in Monaghan supporting over 300 jobs.

A total of 177 virtual-visits were hosted compared to 134 in-person visits nationwide last year. Some clients visited more than one county, with repeat visits to some locations also.

Louth had eight in-person visits last year, and six virtual visits.

Only counties Leitrim (1), Longford (1), and Meath (2) elsewhere in this region welcomed in-person site visits from FDI. None of those counties hosted virtual-visits.

The 2020 figures shows that Dublin again dominates accounting for 47 in-person visits and 74 virtual visits, followed by Cork (13/17), Limerick (9/17), Galway (6/15), Clare (9/7), and Westmeath (7/7).

Enterprise Ireland meanwhile did not have any site visits from overseas investors to Cavan, Louth, Meath or Monaghan in 2020.