BREAKING: Diageo to build new €200 million brewery in Newbridge, Co Kildare

Diageo has announced plans to build a new €200 million brewery at Littleconnell in Newbridge, Co Kildare.

The brewing giant will apply for planning permission for the facility to Kildare County Council this September. If successful, it plans to commence brewing in 2024. The brewery will take two years to construct.

The purpose-built, carbon-neutral facility will brew lagers and ales including Rockshore, Harp, Hop House 13, Smithwicks, Kilkenny and Carlsberg. Some 50 direct jobs will be created with the opening of the brewery, and there will be up to 1,000 construction jobs created during the building works. 

When fully operational, the brewery will have a capacity of two million hectolitres, and will be the second-largest brewing operation in Ireland after Diageo's St James's Gate.

The production of Guinness, however, will not be making a return to Arthur Guinness's home county. Diageo said that the transfer of other brands to the Kildare site will enable the St James's Gate site in Dublin to increase the production of Guinness to meet global demand.

The state-of-the-art brewery will be fully powered by renewable energy. Diageo said it will harness the latest process technology to minimise overall energy and water consumption, and claimed it will enable the brewery to avoid up to 15,000 metric tons of carbon emissions annually.

The news was welcomed by Martin Heydon, TD, Kildare's Minister of State for Agriculture, Food and the Marine. He said the announcement is a 'massive vote of confidence in Kildare', and said it comes after much behind the scenes work to secure the investment for the county.

"We have a talented, well-educated workforce, many of whom commute to Dublin for work. I am determined to deliver top-quality employment opportunities in Kildare," he said.

"The facility on this 50 acre site will be Diageo's second-largest brewing operation in Ireland after St James's Gate and in the heartland of where much of the grain for their beers is grown.

"I want to commend Diageo for their vision in constructing Ireland's first purpose-built carbon neutral brewery. This will future proof its operations and fits with our plans to transition to a low carbon economy while further increasing the economic value of our food and drink sector."

The area to the north-east of Newbridge has become a hub of industrial and services activity in recent years - enabled by the new motorway links to the south of Naas. The new Lidl distribution centre has been joined by the recently-opened Keurig Dr Pepper plant, and Penneys also plans to open a distribution centre in the vicinity. Long-term Newbridge employer Pfizer will also be one of the brewery's new neighbours. 

A 23.6 acre parcel of industrial land at nearby Great Connell was listed with Jordan Auctioneers for €4.72 million in June.

Bord na Móna recently announced plans to construct a new headquarters in the centre of the town.