(Left to right) Intel Ireland general manager Eamonn Sinnott; Tanaiste Eamon Gilmore; Intel president Renée James; and Taoiseach Enda Kenny
Intel has invested US$12.5bn in Ireland since it first started in a former used car showroom on the Long Mile Road in Leixlip, Co Kildare, in 1989 – that averages at about US$900m invested each year.
According to the company’s general manager for Ireland, Eamonn Sinnott, the company has maintained consistent employment of 7,000 people in the Irish economy on an annual basis.
This morning, the company announced a US$500m investment decision to prepare the Irish operation for future technologies morphed into a US$5bn investment so far, safeguarding 4,500 permanent jobs at the Leixlip plant and creating a further 5,000 construction jobs.
Addressing workers at the plant, Intel president Renée James said, “We have been in Ireland for 25 years as an employer and part of the community.
“It’s important for the people of Ireland to know that we have invested US$12.5bn into Ireland and more importantly created so many jobs and families and community around us. With such a stable and business-friendly government environment, we can move Intel Ireland to become leading edge for the next generation.”
A statement for the future
Sinnott said the latest US$5bn will turn the Leixlip operation into a high-volume site for leading-edge products and technologies that have yet to be even invented.
He described the decision-making process around where Intel deploys facilities as not your typical boardroom scenario. “It’s a very evolutionary process, where we are constantly trying to match demand with the capacity we are deploying. It’s an iterative process and hard to predict where it will end up.
“Our previous CEO is on record for saying that in Intel’s world, 80pc of revenues in any year come from products that didn’t exist that year.
“The new facilities in Leixlip will cover the full range and suite of Intel products that will go into computers, servers, tablets and data centres.”
Taoiseach Enda Kenny described the US$5bn investment as a “statement for the future”.
He added that the investment puts Ireland on the map for investment from other companies and boosts the country’s brand image.
“I want to thank you, the workforce, for what you Intel sign on the line for the future – it’s a brand image for what this country stands for.
“This is the best country to build a business. It is a statement for the future. The continued engagement with a company as strong as Intel … it’s driven from the foundation and roots of an old country of which we can be proud.”
Intel in Ireland – the numbers
· 76,460 job years
· €253m a year on gross payroll
· 756 Irish suppliers supported by Intel since 2007
· €1.3m contributed to education annually over the past 25 years
Intel is a Silicon Republic Featured Employer, comprised of top tech companies that are hiring now
