An investment of €200 million into Cork airport has been announced by An Taoiseach Micheál Martin on Thursday this week, as he launched the Cork Airport Development Plan.
The plan will facilitate the continued expansion of Ireland’s second-largest airport to beyond five million passengers per annum in the years ahead, and includes provision for a new mezzanine floor with a state-of-the-art passenger security screening area, a new and larger duty-free shop that will be 30% bigger, a new and larger executive lounge, and the construction of additional boarding gates.
Plans also include a solar farm on a canopy over the Holiday Blue car park, which will provide for over 20% of the airport’s electricity needs into the future. The same car park will see an extra 630 spaces. In the coming years, the expansion will also involve the demolition of the old terminal and old control tower which will allow for the building of a new pier (likely in 2032/2034), with more boarding gates and aircraft parking stands.
With passenger traffic growth of over 50% in the last decade and direct connectivity to the UK and Europe, as well as connectivity to London Heathrow, Amsterdam Schiphol and Paris Charles de Gaulle, Cork Airport continues to grow and contributes over €1 billion to the economy, supporting over 12,000 jobs both directly and indirectly.
The first project to take place is on the mezzanine floor, which will extend over the existing Arrivals area, and the delivery of a new oversized baggage security facility.
Other elements of the plan, including the construction of a new 1.7Mw solar farm, are already in the statutory planning process and construction is predicted before the end of the year.
An Taoiseach, Micheál Martin TD said it was a ‘momentous day’ for Cork Airport, while the Minister for Transport, Darragh O’Brien TD said the investment ‘shows daa’s commitment to developing Cork Airport’s infrastructure, building on significant improvements to date. These improvements include those supported through Exchequer funding of almost €50 million since 2021, such as the runway remediation project and the planned solar farm. This support reflects Government’s recognition of the crucial role that Cork Airport plays for our connectivity and economic prosperity, and I would like to wish them the best in the coming years in delivering this Development Plan.’
Niall MacCarthy, managing director of Cork Airport, added that the airport had several unique selling points. ‘We have have a USP of friendly, easy, no-stress travel with short walking distances from car parks to gate.
This is a magic formula for passenger satisfaction and for that reason, and as we continue to grow, we are planning pro-actively now for the next six to ten years’.
