From Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
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Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue, today officially opened the Dinish Wharf Expansion at Castletownbere Fishery Harbour Centre, one of the six State-owned Fishery Harbour Centres. This major capital project was delivered in phases and funded through the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine’s Fishery Harbour and Coastal Infrastructure Development Programme with part-funding of €6.55 million from the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund.
Officially opening the Dinish Wharf Expansion, the Minister said:
"I’m delighted to officially open the Dinish Wharf Expansion, the culmination of one of the most significant investments ever made in West Cork. Over 400 metres of quayside is now available on Dinish Island and with the new breakwaters providing sheltered berthing conditions, Castletownbere has state of the art, world class facilities that generations to come will benefit from.”
The most recent quay expansion has delivered 216 metres of additional space and brings the overall facility on Dinish Island Wharf to over 400 metres in length. Works on this recent phase commenced on site in October 2018 and were completed in summer 2023. The outcome is that Castletownbere can now facilitate landings by vessels of 100 metres in length and congestion during peak times is now greatly alleviated. The navigational channel and the berthing pocket were both also dredged, again helping to facilitate larger vessels. The dredged material itself was then used in the construction of two new major breakwater structures at the entrance to the harbour ensuring the safe and efficient operation of the harbour.
The Minister acknowledged the role of the main contractor in delivering this recent phase, saying:
“Sorenson Civil Engineering Ltd stepped into this project at a difficult stage and overcame COVID 19 restrictions and supply chain delays to deliver a first-class structure which is on par with the best in Europe.”
In 2022, almost 87% of all fish landed into Ireland was into the six State-owned Fishery Harbour Centres. At Castletownbere, these landings were valued at circa €107 million.
The Minister commented:
“The six Fishery Harbour Centres are critical infrastructure for our seafood industry. By attracting increased fish landings, we will deliver the raw materials to drive and maximise the opportunities for primary and secondary processing and ensure a strong Irish seafood processing industry. The importance of these primary and secondary food production activities is reflected in the government’s Food Vision 2030 policy.”
After unveiling the plaque, Minister McConalogue concluded by saying:
“The continuous development of the infrastructure in the Harbour is critical to the fishing fleet and the land-based seafood processing industry. This critical infrastructure further demonstrates the importance this government places on safeguarding the future of our fisheries dependent coastal communities.”
Photographs will issue to picture desks this morning and are available on request.
The European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) supports activities investing in coastal and fishing communities, and is implemented in Ireland under the Operational Programme for Ireland.
The Fishery Harbour Centres and Coastal Infrastructure Development Programme delivers on the Programme for Government action (Balanced Regional Development Section) to “Invest strategically in harbour infrastructure to attract increased landings into Ireland of sustainably caught fish in our waters, driving the development of the seafood processing sector and the blue economy in coastal communities.”, and the action to “Implement the climate adaptation plan for the agri-food and seafood sector, and assist these sectors, to adapt with the changed environment.”
Major development projects in Castletownbere and other Fishery Harbour Centres were identified as key Strategic Investment Priorities for the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in the National Development Plan 2021-2030 (Project Ireland 2040).