Echelon Data Centres creating 1,100 jobs with €1BN investment in development of new data centres

Echelon Data Centres Limited, a new Irish company based in Dublin, has announced that it will create 1,100 jobs through the €1bn development of 89,000m² of data centres with a total capacity of more than 180MW.

Echelon is to construct data centres of 44,000m² (477,000 sqft) in Clondalkin, Dublin, and 45,000m² (484,000 sqft) in Arklow, Co Wicklow, with respective capacities of up to 84MW and 100MW. The capacity available across the two wholly-owned facilities is the equivalent of approximately 34% of all operational capacity currently available in Ireland and 15% of that either planned or in development.

Planning permission has been granted for the Clondalkin site and is imminent for Arklow. The first tranche of 40MW of capacity will be available in Clondalkin in Q3 2020.

The 1,100 jobs being created consist of 460 construction jobs and 100 operational positions in Clondalkin, and 450 construction jobs and 90 operational positions in Arklow.

The company’s jobs and investment plans were announced in Dublin this morning at an event attended by the Minister for Business, Enterprise, and Innovation, Heather Humphreys, as well as senior representatives from the data centre industry and global technology companies

Speaking at the launch, Minister Humphreys said: “This €1bn investment is fantastic news for Ireland, especially as it’s one that will use a number of Irish suppliers and domestic expertise in its delivery. Success breeds success and Echelon’s new presence here will add to our increasing reputation as a great place to do business.

She continued: “It’s particularly encouraging to see an indigenous company making this type of commitment to a sector that we think of as being dominated by Silicon Valley giants.”

Echelon is owned by Aldgate Developments, a UK and Ireland-based property development company. The company is working to a ‘Triple 5’ strategy – the development of 500MW of capacity, in five countries, by 2025.

Niall Molloy, CEO of Echelon Data Centres, said that the provision of customisable, scalable data centre facilities is key to the continuing growth of the digital economy, driven by social media, ecommerce, digital broadcasting and the internet of things.

“We’re thrilled that work to build Echelon’s first data centres has commenced. Between our two sites in Clondalkin and Arklow, and other sites that we are in the process of identifying and acquiring in Ireland, the UK and Europe, Echelon will become one of Europe’s biggest data centre providers,” he said.

“What this major investment means for Ireland is the creation of many high-quality jobs. The development and operation of these two sites alone will provide employment for 1,100 people through a capital investment of €1bn which will enhance and support Ireland’s growing tech ecosystem.”

“The capacity available across Echelon’s first two facilities is the equivalent of 34% of all current operational capacity available in Ireland and about 15% of all capacity in planning and development. This will enable us to accommodate future growth strategies for clients. Echelon’s hands-on and flexible approach to meeting customer requirements goes as far as offering a site identification, acquisition and development service.”

In addition to its current portfolio, Echelon is in the process of identifying other sites in the UK and Europe and will announce further developments in due course.

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