Tech giant Amazon has invested more than €22 billion in Ireland since it established itself here in 2004, the company said, with €3 billion invested last year.
That includes investment to support customers, employees and communities across Ireland, with its footprint growing significantly since it opened its first office in Ireland 20 years ago.
Amazon, which hit headlines in recent days for compelling staff to return to the office five days a week from January, said export sales from Irish SMEs selling on Amazon hit more than €170 million last year.
“As we celebrate 20 years of Amazon in Ireland, we are incredibly proud of the contribution we’ve made to the Irish economy,” said John Boumphrey, vice-president, Amazon UK & Ireland. “We have invested more than €22 billion during this time, with over €3 billion invested in 2023 alone. Ireland has created an environment that stimulates investment and, for us, that has meant creating jobs, boosting skills, building infrastructure and investing in the communities our employees live in and serve.”
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Amazon’s Irish business has grown from its initial Dublin office and customer service centre in Cork, to hosting the first Amazon Web Services (AWS) infrastructure region outside the US in 2007.
Amazon’s Irish unit has become a key cog in the global business. Latest accounts for Amazon Data Services Ireland Ltd, the group’s main Irish unit, show it achieved turnover of just under €6.1 billion in the year to the end of 2023, up from €4.9 billion a year earlier. Its pretax profit reduced to €15,2 million frmo €61.5 million in 2022.
The company employs about 6,500 people in Ireland across a range of roles that include data engineers, operations management and finance. That includes its AWS cloud services business, which counts Ryanair, Bank of Ireland and Stripe among its clients.
In recent years, Amazon has expanded its retail operation in Ireland, opening a new warehouse to deal with orders on the island of Ireland following Brexit. It is also planning to open a new Amazon.ie website next year.
Amazon figures show more than 1,000 small and medium sized enterprises in Ireland sold about 5.5 million products last year, with more than €100 million in export sales outside the EU.
“Amazon’s 20-year anniversary in Ireland is a testament to the strength of our Irish enterprise ecosystem and talented workforce,” said Leo Clancy, CEO of Enterprise Ireland. “Irish small and medium businesses have greatly benefited from accessing Amazon’s global marketplace, and AWS’s ongoing investment has enabled Irish firms to become world leaders in data centre construction. Enterprise Ireland welcomes Amazon’s continued investment and commitment to supporting entrepreneurial companies in Ireland to scale internationally.”
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