 Last week saw the announcement of a 37,000ft2 workspace development at St. Angelo airport. The standalone unit will accommodate a fixed-wing aircraft maintenance firm complementing the various helicopter maintenance facilities already available at the Airport.
Photo (left to right)
Brendan Hegarty (Chief Executive Fermanagh District Council), Cllr Stephen Huggett (Chairman Fermanagh District Council), Howard Keery (Director of the Joint Technical Secretariat SEUPB), Arlene Foster (Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment), Cllr Fergus McQuillan (ICBAN Board Member), Cllr Robert Turner (ICBAN Chair).
The project is part-financed by the European Union’s INTERREG IVA Programme, managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB) and match funded by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment in Northern Ireland and the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Innovation in the Republic of Ireland.
Speaking during a visit to the site, Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment, Arlene Foster said:
“The creation of this new aircraft maintenance facility has the potential to result in the creation of at least 14 high value added jobs, in the aviation, engineering and technical disciplines. It will no doubt contribute to the growth of the local economy and play an important role in the long term prosperity of the area.”
Councillor Stephen Huggett, Chairman of Fermanagh District Council, said of the project: “This is a welcome announcement for Fermanagh and indeed the entire ICBAN region. It is integral to the achievement of the Airport’s long term goals including achieving ‘Centre of Excellence’ status for training and maintenance and becoming Ireland’s premier corporate airfield.”
The project is the result of cross-border co-operation between the ten local authorities in the central border region working together through The Irish Central Border Area Network (ICBAN) and will be led by Fermanagh District Council as owners of St. Angelo Airport. This is one of the first projects to receive funding under ICBAN’s Multi Annual Plan; it’s funding plan for the cross-border region.
ICBAN Chairperson Cllr Robert Turner added: “This project is an important infrastructure investment for the cross-border region and will help attract key business to the area, not just within Northern Ireland but also to the Republic of Ireland. I would like to pay tribute to the staff of ICBAN and Fermanagh District Council in seeing the project to fruition.”
Commenting on the funding announcement Howard Keery, Director of the Joint Technical Secretariat with the SEUPB, said: “This project has been awarded a significant level of assistance under the EU’s INTERREG IVA Programme. Upon completion it will create the necessary infrastructure to enhance a valuable business sector, on a cross-border basis. This is one of the core objectives of the INTERREG IVA Programme as it has been specifically designed to encourage business competitiveness in order to develop a more dynamic economy.”
The development is due to commence development in early 2011 with completion expected by the end of the year.
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