The growth of Ireland’s data centre industry has prompted more than a little vexation in recent time but could they be a knight in shining armour for green energy transition? A new report would have us think so. According to Cloud Infrastructure Ireland (CII), the Ibec linked organisation that lobbies for the sector, data centres could gobble up much of the energy supplied by offshore wind farms and, in offering to do so, would encourage financial investment in their development. Barry O’Halloran has a look at the document.
It’s been cold outside and if you haven’t felt it, the electricity grid has. EirGrid, which runs the infrastructure, reported a new record in use on Wednesday amid plummeting temperatures and rocketing demand. And despite more energy security this year, that record is likely to be broken again given there are more businesses that use large quantities of electricity, including data centres. Barry O’Halloran explains.
The winter season brings another chill factor too. With Black Friday and Cyber Monday around the corner, retailers will not be happy to hear that shoppers are going cold on their offers. Is the deal real? Are they likely to investigate purchases before they buy them? The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC), which has carried out research ahead of what is traditionally a big pre-Christmas sales window, has found diminishing interest, not to mention trust. That said, those who will go out to splash the cash, will splash a bit more than last year. Conor Pope has the details.
The McCann family, of Fyffes fame, has succeeded in taking Balmoral International Land fully private having secured the backing of shareholders at a sometimes tense meeting on Thursday. Joe Brennan breaks down the detail of the company, and the latest move that provoked irritation among smaller investors. Some claimed corporate greed but the transaction will increase the direct McCann family stake, as well as its indirect holdings, to 79 per cent.
The Irish arm of Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company, which bottles and distributes Coke and other products, paid a €30 million interim dividend to its shareholders last year, reports Ian Curran who has looked at its accounts. Irish sales surged by more than 14 per cent, and it ultimately paid out close to €4.7 million in corporation taxes.
There is mounting concern about climate change and an international stagnation in addressing it. In his column, John FitzGerald observes how absent the debate is from the current election build-up. Whatever happened to the green hue of campaigns past? It’s not quite as urgent this time. “Most parties,” he notes, “avoid spelling out any proposals that would involve hard choices for individuals or companies.”
Donald Trump, it turns out, is not the only threat to future Irish economic prosperity in the form of foreign direct investment. In a letter to Government, IDA Ireland, the investment promotion agency, spelt out some other home truths, none of which will likely come as a surprise. Competition for FDI is becoming “more intense and aggressive”, it highlighted in a letter seen by Ken Foxe, while supplies of everything from energy, water and housing are all creating challenges in attracting business.
Stay up to date with all our business news: sign up to our Business Today daily email news digest. If you’d like to read more about the issues that affect your finances try signing up to On the Money, the weekly newsletter from our personal finance team, which will be issued every Friday to Irish Times subscribers.
