With 2024 marking the mid-way point in the delivery of its 2023 – 2026 strategic plan, Shannon Chamber directed its energies in 2024 on ensuring that the key deliverables contained in the plan were either completed or underway. This mirrored comment made by Chamber CEO Helen Downes on many occasions in the past, that plans are worthless unless implemented.

Operating at many levels – achieving and implementing on its own and attaining results in collaboration with its many partners, with commendable results as outlined in the ‘Review of the Year’ – sharp focus was maintained on ensuring that key strategic issues impacting members and the region, outlined in the plan, were receiving adequate attention by the relevant stakeholders.

Chief among these were:

• The continuation of URDF funding to enable the implementation of the Shannon Town Centre Masterplan
• A review of the National Aviation Policy, and the permanent inclusion of Shannon Airport in the Regional Airports Programme
• A commitment to capitalising on the potential that Ireland’s west coast offers for the development of a Floating Offshore Wind sector
• A review of General Work Permit salary thresholds

Reviewing progress made on each of these issues in 2024, Shannon Chamber CEO Helen Downes said that discovering, in the latter part of the year, that URDF funding, which was earmarked by Clare County Council as the funding source for the delivery of phase one of the Plan – the OneShannonHub – was almost exhausted and that no provision for renewing it was made in Budget 2025, was a huge disappointment.

“The Chamber board, executive, and members expended a lot of energy inputting to all phases of the Plan’s development, and it is critical that Government commits to its implementation. Having maintained a lobby in this regard in 2024, we look forward to the formation of the next Government and to renewing our call for URDF funding, or some fund, to be made available to Clare County Council to deliver the Plan. This would demonstrate a commitment to enhancing Shannon’s infrastructure, recognising the contribution it makes to the national economy. The idea that yet another plan for Shannon may not be delivered simply cannot be allowed to happen,” said Ms Downes.

“Having called on Government on many occasions in the past to honour its pledge for balanced regional development through undertaking a review of the National Aviation Policy, we will maintain this lobby in 2025. We believe that Shannon and the region can deliver a lot more, to a lot more companies and overseas visitors, if there is a strategic shift in how we distribute air traffic across all state airports. Ireland’s regional airports have the capacity to alleviate the pressure on Dublin Airport. Shannon Airport, with its existing infrastructure, can instantly absorb an additional 3 million passengers without the need for any further upgrades. Not only would better utilisation of Shannon address Dublin’s immediate challenges, but it would also drive balanced regional development, particularly in the west of Ireland.”

Referring to its continual call for the development of a floating offshore wind sector off Ireland’s west coast, Ms Downes said that this lobby will continue, in collaboration with other stakeholders in the region.

“Experiencing some of the strongest and most consistent wind speeds in Europe, due to its exposure to the Atlantic Ocean, the west coast presents the ideal environment for harnessing wind energy. The economic benefits of developing this sector are too great to be ignored and we will maintain our lobby in this regard, given the sector’s potential to boost local economies through new industry hubs, ports, and supply chains,” stated Ms Downes.

Focusing in on its final lobbying action of 2024, which was a call on Government to review the proposed changes to the General Work Permits, specifically the proposed salary threshold, which was set to take effect in January 2025, Ms Downes welcomed the decision by Government to pause this scheduled increase pending the completion of an internal review by the Department of Enterprise.

“We proactively engaged with our members, our Oireachtas representatives, and Enterprise Ireland, in December on this issue and are delighted that companies’ concerns are being considered. I know that many of our member companies have made a submission to the Department on this and we, as the representative business organisation, have done so also. We look forward to a positive outcome on this and will be engaging further with Government on the issue,” added Ms Downes.

Thanking the board and executive for their commitment to the Chamber in 2024, Ms Downes said that 2025 will be a very special year for the Chamber, when it will celebrate its thirty-year milestone in November.

“We pride ourselves in being a member-driven, proactive Chamber that, over the past twenty-nine years, has remained relevant and fit for purpose, constantly improving our offering to members in line with their changing needs. Our forums and networks – the CEO Forum, the HR Forum, the Mid-West Lean Network, and the Mid-West Sustainability Network – continue to deliver value to our members, through giving them a platform for keeping abreast of business trends in their respective sectors.

“We have a lot in the pipeline for 2025 and look forward to delivering further on our vision to ensure that the pioneering and innovative spirit of Shannon and the region will continue to grow,” Ms Downes concluded.

ENDS

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Notes for Editors

Review of the Year 2024

Proactive lobbying to address challenges impacting business

Initiating and influencing change that positively adjusts the conditions for business and the environment in which its members operate is a priority of Shannon Chamber. Key issues brought to the attention of Government and the region’s Oireachtas and elected representatives, and local authorities during 2024 included requests re:

Housing: seeking resolution to the impact that the lack of housing is having on the economy particularly on companies’ ability to recruit and retain staff. Shannon Chamber sought alleviation of the various obstacles that hinder housing infrastructure development, such as the availability of land for housing and the barriers to building, including the lack of serviced and zoned land.

Floating Offshore Wind: requesting the preparation of Designated Maritime Area Plans (DMAPS) to determine the broad area where floating offshore renewable energy projects can be developed off Ireland’s west coast. Shannon Chamber specifically requested that the expertise available in Clare County Council to develop DMAPS should be utilised to expedite the marine mapping of the Atlantic, thus progressing the development of the floating offshore wind sector in Ireland.

Funding for Shannon Town Centre Masterplan: Shannon Chamber was vehement in its continual requests to Government for URDF funding to facilitate the delivery of the OneShannonHub, phase one of the Shannon Town Centre Masterplan. 

Shannon Town and Environs Flood Relief Scheme: Shannon Chamber inputted to and held multiple meetings on the Shannon Town and Environs Flood Relief Scheme with Clare County Council and was delighted to note that the contents of its submission to the public consultation phase were taken on board. Meetings will continue until implementation.

Unit 153 Shannon Free Zone: Given the strategic positioning of Unit 153 Shannon Free Zone, owned by the OPW, Shannon Chamber wrote to the OPW to ascertain if consideration is being given to relocating the Motor Tax Office to the Zone and to assess if other potential multi-tenant uses are being considered for the building. 

Chambers Ireland Election Manifestos: Presentation of key priority areas in Chambers Ireland’s Election Manifestos – Local, European and General Elections, held in 2024.

N19 Shannon Airport Access Road: Productive and positive meetings and updates were held on the proposed designs and timelines to implementation.

General Work Permit Visas: Given members’ concerns re the contemplated minimum threshold of €39,000 from 2025 – 2026 and its detrimental impact on the financial viability of many companies, lobbying on this issue was ongoing at year end. Shannon Chamber to make a Submission to Government pre deadline of 10 January 2025.

Where and when relevant, Shannon Chamber responds to and initiates submissions to Government on issues of regional and national importance. We do this on our own volition and/or in partnership with Chambers Ireland and relevant organisations in our sphere of influence. 

Submissions made in 2024 (Submissions can be downloaded at www.shannonchamber.ie/about/policy-submissions/

• Submission to Consultation on the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Future Framework Policy Statement. Submission made in collaboration with the Atlantic Economic Corridor (AEC) Business Forum and AEC Chambers. (February)
• Submission to NTA Route 343 Amendment (May), including discussions with Irish Rail and Bus Eireann on critical transport requirements, including the development of a rail link to Shannon Airport.
• Submission to Draft Revised National Planning Framework. (July)

A busy Events’ Schedule

Hosting high-calibre in-person and virtual events on topics of relevance and beneficial to member companies remains a high priority for Shannon Chamber as it enables members to learn, collaborate and network. 2024 was a busy year in this regard:

 The 40 events held in in 2024 included: 

• 3 lunch events with keynote speakers:
  • Darragh O’Brien, Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage
  • Eddie Wilson, CEO, Ryanair
  • Alice Mansergh, CEO, Tourism Ireland
• Hosting a visit to Shannon by The Royal Commission for Riyadh City (RCRC) in April.
• 3 conferences
  • ‘History Ireland Hedge School, Dr Brendan O’Regan – Life and Legacy’ conference in April 2024, in association with Sixmilebridge Historical Society.
  • S4 Conference: Specialists Sharing Sustainability Strategies (culmination event in the Mid-West Sustainability Week, September 2024).
  • Mid-West Lean Network Conference: Are People Central to Lean? November 2024.
• Annual Golf Classic with full timesheet involving 54 teams playing on the day.
• 25 seminars and business meetings held in association with a wide range of stakeholders including Adare HRM, Grant Thornton, Ireland Canada Business Association, Regional Skills Forum, Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland, HILT, Clean Ireland Recycling, Southern Region Waste Planning Office, SEAI, Antaris Consulting, EY, Deloitte, Clare County Council, National Biodiversity Data Centre, Uisce Éireann, The Change We Need, WDC, Viatel Technology Group, German-Irish Chamber of Industry and Commerce and ESB.
• 2 workshops and 1 site visit, to Seating Matters (Lean Made Simple) in Northern Ireland, hosted by the Chamber’s Mid-West Lean Network. The workshops included presentations from Element Six, Zimmer Biomet, Bijur Delimon Ireland, B. Braun Medical Ltd.
• Two new initiatives, which saw active participation by members:
  • Lunchtime Networking along the Shannon Estuary Loop Walk
  • Luncheon Cycle to mark World Bicycle Day – ‘Wheely’ great fun promised!

Partnering with industry to provide learning and development opportunities

2024 was another successful year for Shannon Chamber Skillnet with 98 programmes, involving 2,904 training days, delivered to 582 employees in 96 companies.

These programmes provided a wide variety of learning and development opportunities in areas such as management and leadership development, lean, project management, digital skills, communication, as well as industry-specific professional development.

Shannon Chamber Skillnet key highlights in 2024 include:

• The creation of an Electric Vehicle (EV) Technology programme in collaboration with the Technological University of The Shannon (TUS) and a range of industry partners. This course, the first of its kind in the country at level 7, aimed to upskill motor mechanics to enable them to safely work on both hybrid and fully electric vehicles. This hybrid course combined 10 weeks’ online lectures with 2 days’ practical workshops. The successful participants are awarded a 10 ECTS credit Special Purpose Award Certificate.
• Being awarded a new funding stream, ESF+, by Skillnet Ireland, which enabled member companies to avail of a higher subsidy on certain certificated programmes such as the Level 8 Diploma in High Performance Leadership, certified by Technological University of Dublin.
• Participation in an EU-wide project, Project Eagle, in conjunction with the University of Limerick, Limerick Chamber Skillnet and Skillnet Ireland. This project aims to enhance the digital skills of managers and staff in SMEs. Programmes delivered in 2024 included:
  • An ‘Introduction to Data Analytics/Visualisation & Machine Learning’; and
  • ‘Digitalisation of Process’

Both were fully subscribed and the ‘Introduction to Data Analytics/Visualisation & Machine Learning’ programme is being delivered again in January 2025.

• Enabling Shannon Chamber member companies to avail of a range of fully funded supports through ENTIRE – one of 4 European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs) in Ireland – funded by Enterprise Ireland and the European Union, Next Generation EU fund with Skillnet Ireland the industry partner in this initiative. ENTIRE focuses on supporting SMEs and public authorities in life sciences/healthtech, agriculture, energy and transport sectors on their digital journeys. Shannon Chamber Skillnet members availed of the Digital Maturity assessment, enabling them to plot their digital strategy.

Industry engagement is a central activity of Shannon Chamber Skillnet delivering to members’ needs. A workshop event held in December 2024, attended by member companies focused on companies’ learning and development needs for 2025. The outcome of this event will inform the Chamber on the level of funding and the types of programmes to deliver in 2025. 

On a national level, Skillnet Ireland launched several new initiatives and schemes in 2024 including ‘The offshore Wind Academy’ and ‘Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) Accelerate programme’. Most exciting for our member companies, however, is the newly announced SME Upskilling Incentivisation Scheme. This new scheme will allow SMEs participating in Skillnet courses the opportunity to reclaim business costs related to training (e.g. salary cost of an employee while undertaking a Skillnet Programme). Further details on how this new scheme will operate will be announced in 2025.

ENDS

ABOUT Shannon Chamber

Affiliated to the national Chambers Ireland network, Shannon Chamber is the representative body for over 340 businesses in the greater Shannon area in County Clare, and its reach extends to approximately 19,500 employees. Formed in 1995, the Chamber is now recognised as one of the most progressive and fastest growing chambers in the country. Its membership is drawn from a diverse range of sectors, such as aircraft leasing, aircraft maintenance repair and overhaul (MRO), pharmaceuticals, medical devices, ICT, international services, engineering and logistics. Many different client categories are represented, including multinational companies, indigenous SMEs, micro enterprises and sole traders.

About Shannon Chamber Board

Eoin Gavin, Managing Director, Eoin Gavin Transport – President

Mark Nolan, Managing Director, Dromoland Castle Hotel

Helen Downes, Chief Executive, Shannon Chamber

Kevin Thompstone, Managing Director, The Thompstone Group

Ian Barrett, Managing Director, Care About You Ltd.

Edmund Jennings, Managing Director, CREGG Group

Ray O’ Driscoll, Chief Operating Officer (COO), Shannon Group Plc

Adrian Sylver, Head of School, Shannon College of Hotel Management

Marlo Kearney, Head of Operations, PPG Shannon

Colin MacDonald, Founder and Chief Executive, Fine Grain Property

Eoin Hoctor, Owner, Eason Shannon