The Government has decided to grant Shannon Airport full independence from Dublin Airport Authority on 31st December 31st 2012 and merge the airport with a restructured Shannon Development to form a new, publicly owned, commercial entity in 2013. The new entity will include Shannon Development’s extensive landbank and will be tasked with developing an international aviation centre of excellence.
It is claimed that the creation of 850 jobs has been secured from two Shannon-based companies, as part of plans for an International Aviation Services Centre and that these commitments depend on the separation of Shannon Airport from the DAA.
A report from the Aviation Business Development Task Force, set up by the Shannon Steering Group, also states that the Aviation Services Centre “is conservatively projected to create and maintain 3,000 – 3,500 new direct jobs within five years, not including construction jobs”.
Legislation will now be drafted to establish the new entity and will also change the name of the Dublin Airport Authority to take account of the new ownership structures. The Government plans to have this legislation enacted by the Oireachtas by the middle of next year.
The Final Report by the Shannon Aviation Business Development Task Force is available at: http://www.transport.ie/viewitem.asp?id=13687&lang=ENG&loc=432. The Final Report of the Change Management Task Force will be published in due course.
Shannon Airport has been loss-making since 2008 and passenger numbers have fallen by 60% over the past five years.
