Green light for €1bn development that will transform site adjacent to Drogheda Port
Louth County Council has approved the project, with plans to invest up to €1bn over the next ten years to transform the site.
Fifty jobs are to be created in the first phase of the project, with the potential to create several hundred more over subsequent phases.
Gyrogy, an Irish energy-tech firm, and Meridiam, an independent investment Benefit Corporation and asset manager in long-term sustainable infrastructure solutions, acquired the Premier Periclase business in May 2023.
Since then, the partners have designed plans to transform the site on the north bank of the River Boyne beside Drogheda Port into a state-of-the art industrial campus for large energy users.
The planned pathway to net-zero business campus, which will be called 'Core', will involve an investment of between €600 million and €1 billion over the next ten years.
The investment, planned to facilitate and manage flexible and renewable energy in 'real-time' for the national grid will pave the way for a net-zero industrial campus emissions model that can change how large energy users operate in Ireland.
The redevelopment plan includes demolition and site remediation works, substantial upgrades to the Premier Periclase site infrastructure, and the integration of renewable energy sources, flexible generation and advanced energy storage systems on the new Core campus. Subject to planning, the first phase of development will focus on installing sustainable energy infrastructure and a 32MW data centre.
Over time, the site will grow to accommodate a range of high-tech industries, including biopharma, food, beverage, and sustainable manufacturing. The site's decarbonisation and development focus will make the campus extremely attractive to large foreign direct investment and Irish projects, according to the partners behind the project.
The Core project is viewed as an opportunity to transform a site which was once one of Ireland's largest sources of industrial emissions into a model for sustainable energy innovation, according to the partners behind the huge investment.
By integrating on-site renewable energy generation, battery storage, and gas engines, the campus will decarbonise energy usage for its large energy users while managing and contributing surplus power to the national grid during peak times.
The Premier Periclase site has a history rooted in industrial innovation. Dating back to 1938, initially for Cement production and since 1977 for Magnesia and Magnesium Hydroxide products, the site played a major role in the life of Drogheda for much of the last century, providing valued local employment, which supported families and the economy of the town.
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