Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 June 2026
286. Deputy Mark Wall asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment if grants or funding is available to a business needing to expand, and purchase and develop additional land in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47124/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraRegional development is a key element of Ireland’s enterprise policy and is a key focus of the work of my Department and our enterprise development agencies. In that regard, IDA Ireland is continuing its strong commitment to promoting FDI in regional locations as part of its 2025-29 strategy, Adapt Intelligently. IDA is targeting 550 of 1,000 investment projects over the lifetime of the strategy outside Dublin including a target of 55 investments in the Mid-East.
In that regard, Kildare is marketed as part of the Mid-East Region. There are 126 IDA client companies in the region, comprised of counties Kildare, Louth, Meath and Wicklow, employing 20,284 people of which 50 are located in County Kildare employing 10,258 people. The FDI performance in the region has been consistent over the past five years with employment among IDA clients increasing by 5% and the Mid-East has a significant ecosystem of well-established companies across Technology, Life Sciences, International Financial Services and Engineering & Industrial Technologies. It has also won significant investment in the Food and the Film sub-sectors.
IDA investment supports and incentivises companies looking to expand and develop strategic international operations in Ireland include:
• Research, Development & Innovation (RD&I) Grants to incentivize companies to carry out in-house or collaborative R&D projects.
• Capital and Employment Grants to aid in establishing new operations or expanding capacity, with funding amounts tied to the scale and location of the company.
• Training Grants to subsidize employee training costs for new or existing IDA client companies.
• Environmental Aid / "Go Green" Supports to help large-scale energy users meet carbon reduction targets.
As the Deputy is aware, the availability of suitable property and strategic sites is a critical component of the regional value proposition and can be the key differentiator in investment decisions in the regions from both new and existing clients as well as clients of Enterprise Ireland and the LEOs. Through its Regional Property Programme, IDA aims to provide agile, sustainable, flexible property solutions, providing certainty to clients in advance of demand. Currently, IDA Ireland has approx. 78 ha available for marketing in County Kildare.
IDA has identified the need for appropriately zoned and serviceable lands in regional locations and is focused on acquiring new landbanks and strategic sites to support investments from FDI and indigenous client companies supported by Enterprise Ireland. This approach will assist in strengthening the existing established client base in core sectors such as Technology, Content, Consumer and Business Services, International Financial Services, Lifesciences Food, Engineering and Green Economy. It will also enhance the opportunity for attracting investment in key growth areas such as digitalisation, AI, semiconductors, health and sustainability.
Of course, my Department and our Enterprise Development Agencies also support Irish-based enterprise development in the regions including through Enterprise Ireland, the and the LEOs. Enterprise Ireland provides a range of supports to assist eligible companies to scale and expand their operations. These supports are primarily aimed at strengthening productivity, competitiveness and export growth.
Enterprise Ireland does not generally provide grant aid specifically for the purchase of land. Companies seeking to expand and requiring additional land would typically be expected to finance the land acquisition element through their own resources or commercial finance. However, where a client is undertaking a broader expansion project, Enterprise Ireland will engage with the company to understand their requirements, which may result in support for associated capital investment, such as the development of buildings, facilities and the acquisition of equipment, where these are directly linked to job creation and increased international sales.
Enterprise Ireland offers the following supports in particular:
• Capital investment supports to assist companies in acquiring new equipment and developing facilities as part of an expansion project.
• Strategic and consultancy supports to help companies plan and implement growth and expansion initiatives.
• Employment supports tied to job creation arising from expansion plans.
Businesses can also engage with the National Enterprise Hub to identify the full range of government supports available for expansion projects.
The Local Enterprise Offices, including the County Kildare office in Naas, provide direct grant assistance to small businesses. Priority is given to enterprises in manufacturing and internationally traded services that have the potential to export and progress to Enterprise Ireland’s portfolio.
The Business Expansion Grant is one such grant designed to assist a business in the manufacturing and internationally traded services to grow, after the initial 18-month start-up period. The Business Expansion Grant offers support to fund Capital items, Salary costs, Consultancy, Innovation, Marketing and other relevant general overhead costs to help the business to grow. However, it should be noted that these grants cannot be used for land purchasing or development. The Expansion Grant is not normally available to domestically trading areas such as retail, personal services, professional services or construction.
As Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, I can assure you that I am committed to driving a competitive, resilient and sustainable economy that supports enterprise, tourism and employment across all of Ireland’s regions.
