The Minister for Enterprise Mary Coughlan has rejected claims that proposal from Ryanair to create up to 500 maintenance jobs in the former SRT hangar at Dublin Airport foundered because the Government was unwilling to ensure that the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) sold or leased the hangar to Ryanair for the same price it had purchased it from SR Technics.
Ryanair, which did not want to deal directly with the DAA over leasing the hangar, today published correspondence between it and Ms Coughlan’s office.
It said it showed that "neither the Tánaiste nor the Government were willing to upset the DAA monopoly, even if it would mean a multi-million euro investment by the world's largest international airline in Dublin Airport and the creation of up to 500 well paid maintenance jobs to replace the 800 jobs lost recently through the closure of SR Technics."
Ryanair said the DAA had instead leased the SRT hangar to Aer Lingus for its line maintenance operation "which has created no new jobs whatsoever".
"It's sad that neither the Tánaiste nor the Transport Minister are willing to stand up to the DAA monopoly, even if this results in the loss of 500 well paid engineering jobs at Dublin Airport," the airline's chief executive Michael O'Leary said.
"Last week the first 200 of these jobs were won by Scotland and Glasgow Prestwick Airport and Ryanair expects to announce a second maintenance facility at another EU airport later this year, which will account for the remainder of these jobs.
"The former engineering workers in SR Technics must wonder why it is that the Tánaiste and the Minister for Transport would prefer to see the DAA monopoly lease the SRT hangar for line maintenance to Aer Lingus, who have created no new jobs at the facility, rather than sell it to Ryanair — at an arms-length price — which would have seen up to 500 well paid engineering jobs created in Dublin," Mr O'Leary said.
In response, Ms Coughlan said that decisions as to the location of any investment by Ryanair was a matter for the Company. "Over a protracted period last year every effort was made by me in consultation with IDA Ireland, to advance the outline proposal for securing the Ryanair investment for Dublin Airport, including direct engagement by IDA Ireland, at my request," she said
"Despite the best efforts of IDA, as acknowledged by Mr. O' Leary of Ryanair, it was not possible to overcome obstacles in relation to access to specific hangar space at the airport."
She said the Department and enterprise agencies remained available to assist "in whatever way we can to maximise investment by Ryanair at Dublin Airport and would ask Mr O' Leary to continue his dialogue with us."