Infrastructure

Water concerns make it ‘much more difficult’ to win overseas investment – former IDA head

Martin Shanahan says Dublin is Ireland’s ‘only city of international scale’ and argues contentious Shannon pipeline is ‘imperative’

Martin Shanahan: ‘Concerns over the future availability of water make it much more difficult to attract investment.’ Picture: Arthur Carron

Concerns over Ireland’s water security are making it “much more difficult” for Irish officials to attract investment from overseas, according to the former chief executive of IDA Ireland.

Speaking to the Business Post, Martin Shanahan said that it was “imperative” that projects to meet the future needs of the greater Dublin area “progress quickly”, in reference to the contentious Shannon pipeline.

Shanahan, who led IDA Ireland from 2014 until 2022, also said Dublin was Ireland’s ...