It was announced today that Echelon Data Centres has been granted planning permission for its planned 45,000m² (484,000 sqft) facility in Arklow, Co Wicklow.

The new data centre represents an investment of €500 million and will create 540 jobs – 450 in construction and 90 operational positions. 
 
The development is located on the former Irish Fertilisers Industries site in Avoca Business Park, next to the M11 in Arklow, Co Wicklow, which is the subject of a substantial investment by Echelon Data Centres. The initial development phase of the project will be funded by the company and the first 35MW of capacity will be available from the first quarter of 2021.
 
The potential capacity of the Arklow site – which has significant grid power available to it – is almost 20% of all operational data centre capacity currently available in Ireland and nearly 10% of that either planned or in development.

The Echelon Data Centres facility in Arklow has the potential to be one of the largest data centres in the world, serving large companies operating in ecommerce, cloud computing, digital broadcasting, social media, telecommunications and the internet of things. 
 
Speaking this week, CEO of Echelon Data Centres, Niall Molloy said, "We’re very pleased to have been granted planning permission for the Arklow site, and we intend to begin developing it immediately. Work has already commenced on Echelon’s other site in Clondalkin and between the two Irish sites, and other locations that we are in the process of identifying and acquiring in Ireland, the UK and Europe, Echelon will become one of Europe’s largest data centre providers."

He added, "What our plans mean for Ireland is the creation of many high-quality jobs. The development and operation of the sites in Arklow and Clondalkin will provide employment for 1,100 people through a total capital investment of €1 billion, enhancing and supporting Ireland’s growing tech ecosystem."

Source: www.businessworld.ie