There was relief and welcome in Athenry last evening at the news that Galway County Council has this week granted planning permission for the construction of Dexcom’s new global manufacturing facility in Athenry.
Earlier this year, the medtech company announced plans to create 1,000 permanent jobs at its facility on IDA lands in the town. It will contain a highly automated and efficient manufacturing operation with an emphasis on green technologies.
Dexcom expects to provide about 500 construction jobs while the facility is being built and up to 1,000 high tech graduate and technician level positions once the site is running at full capacity.
The planning decision, which is granted subject to conditions, has been issued to the applicant (Dexcom ) and is available to view at www.eplanning.ie/GalwayCC (Ref: 2361035 ).
Cathaoirleach of Galway County Council, Cllr Liam Carroll said the new Dexcom facility in Athenry will be one of the largest single private sector investments in the the West of Ireland.
"The arrival of Dexcom in Athenry will provide a major boost to the economy of the West, Midwest and Midlands regions," he said.
Deputy Ciaran Cannon said last evening that the granting of planning permission for such a substantial industrial development in an East Galway town is the result of years of hard work and commitment on the part of so many people.
"Here in Galway we have created an ecosystem capable of attracting and retaining some of the world’s most innovative companies, with Dexcom being the most recent example. We have the infrastructure, the technology and most of all, the talented people to attract and retain the very best.
"For Athenry, I believe that this is only the beginning, and Dexcom’s presence here will be the magnet to attract similar investment in the not too distant future. We were all deeply disappointed with the Apple outcome, but it deepened our resolve to market Athenry to the world.
"I’m very grateful to the IDA for their sterling work on our behalf and to our Taoiseach, who in his previous role as Minster for Enterprise used every opportunity to promote the Athenry IDA site in the US. Today we see the outcome of that work.
"Today is also a time to plan for the new opportunities this development will present to local indigenous companies, opportunities to feed the massive supply chain for Dexcom, creating even more jobs. It’s a time to ramp up our efforts, rather than sitting on our laurels," he concluded.
