BREAKING: €200 million Diageo brewery planned for Newbridge, County Kildare, given green light

The proposed €200 million Diageo brewery planned for Newbridge has been given the green light by Kildare County Council.

The new brewery will be the first built by the company in Ireland since the 1960s.

Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture and Fine Gael TD for Kildare-South, Martin Heydon, told the Leinster Leader that he welcomed the announcement.

He said: "Diageo's plans for a carbon neutral brewery at a greenfield site in Littleconnell represents a massive investment in Kildare-South.

"News that the planning has been granted by Kildare County Council is a significant step forward in the process."

Minister Heydon also said that the brewery will create up to 1,000 jobs in the construction phase, followed by '70 direct, high-quality jobs once built with significant scope for further expansion.'

He continued: "It highlights Kildare-South as an ideal location for investment and employment: we have a talented, well educated workforce, many of whom commute to Dublin for work, and I am determined to help to deliver quality employment opportunities in Kildare.

"As Minister of State in the Department of Agriculture, I see huge potential in increasing the economic value of our food and drink sector. 

"I look forward to seeing Ireland's first carbon neutral brewery come to fruition for the benefit of Kildare-South," he concluded.

Fine Gael Minister Martin Heydon at the launch of plans for the brewery last July.