Shannon Development (legally the ''Shannon Free Airport Development Company Limited'' formerly known as SFADCO) was an important regional development body for the Shannon Region of

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

. Its area in the lower

River Shannon The River Shannon ( ga, Abhainn na Sionainne, ', '), at in length, is the longest river in the British Isles. It drains the Shannon River Basin, which has an area of , – approximately one fifth of the area of the island of Ireland. The Shan ...

basin comprised all of counties Clare,

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

, and the former

North Tipperary North Tipperary ( ga, Tiobraid Árann Thuaidh) was a county in Ireland. It was part of the Mid-West Region and was also located in the province of Munster. It was named after the town of Tipperary and consisted of 48% of the land area of the ...

, as well as north Kerry and west

Offaly County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hono ...

. Its key founder was

Brendan O'Regan Brendan O'Regan CBE (1917–2008) was an Irish businessman responsible for developing Shannon Airport, inventing the concept of the duty-free shop and transforming the Shannon Region of Ireland. He was involved in promoting peace in Northern Ir ...

. Shannon Development worked with, but was not an agency of, Forfás.

Responsibility

Shannon Development was set up as Shannon Free Airport Development Company by the

Irish Government The Government of Ireland ( ga, Rialtas na hÉireann) is the cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland. The Constitution of Ireland vests executive authority in a government which is headed by the , the head of government. The govern ...

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity ...

to promote the airport and region.

Shannon Airport Shannon Airport ( ga, Aerfort na Sionainne) is an international airport located in County Clare in the Republic of Ireland. It is adjacent to the Shannon Estuary and lies halfway between Ennis and Limerick. The airport is the third busiest ai ...

was built at a strategic point on the early transatlantic flying route, but with the age of the jet, its fortunes declined. In 1969 Aer Rianta took responsibility of the airport. Shannon Development was responsible for a number of areas of development of the region including tourism and industry similar to

IDA Ireland Industrial Development Agency (IDA Ireland) ( ga, An Ghníomhaireacht Forbartha Tionscail) is the agency responsible for the attraction and retention of inward foreign direct investment (FDI) into Ireland. The agency was founded in 1949 as the I ...

. The agency was responsible for Shannon Free Zone and National Technology Park on which the

University of Limerick The University of Limerick (UL) ( ga, Ollscoil Luimnigh) is a public research university institution in Limerick, Ireland. Founded in 1972 as the National Institute for Higher Education, Limerick, it became a university in 1989 in accordance ...

is located.

Shannon Town Shannon () or Shannon Town (), named after the river near which it stands, is a town in County Clare, Ireland. It was given town status on 1 January 1982. The town is located just off the N19 road, a spur of the N18/M18 road between Limeri ...

was also created and managed by the company until it was transferred to Clare County Council in 2004. This property transfer was the biggest property transaction in the history of the state. Shannon Development also acted as a landlord for many companies in the region. Companies that qualify, paid rent to Shannon Development. In return the company can apply for Enterprise Ireland grant funding through Shannon Development. This constitutes a symbiotic relationship. The government reviewed the role of the agency in July 2005 and its functions are being realigned. Under the new arrangements, Shannon Development will have an enhanced regional economic development role with a particular emphasis on addressing the needs of the less developed parts of the Shannon region. It will also retain responsibility for the Shannon Free Zone industrial park. The existing enterprise support functions (carried out by Shannon Development in relation to both indigenous and overseas enterprises) will be assumed by the national agencies, Enterprise Ireland and

. Shannon Development became part of Shannon Group plc on 10 November 2014. To emphasise a more commercially focused property remit, Shannon Development was renamed Shannon Commercial Enterprises Ltd, trading as Shannon Enterprises.

Shannon Heritage

Shannon Heritage, a member of the group, is a semi-state commercial body responsible for operating tourist sites including the GPO,

Craggaunowen Craggaunowen is an archaeological open-air museum in eastern County Clare, Ireland. It is named for the 16th-century castle which is one of its main components. Craggaunowen is located 10 km east of Quin, County Clare. The name Craggaunow ...

, King John's Castle and Bunratty Castle. In August 2019 Fingal County Council announced Shannon Heritage were to be appointed to run the Fry Model Railway when it re-opens in addition to Malahide Castle and Demesne which they already operate.

References

External links

Shannon DevelopmentEnterprise IrelandIDA Ireland
*https://web.archive.org/web/20110721125013/http://www.irishpressreleases.ie/printer-page.php?p=1538 {{authority control Economy of the Republic of Ireland Defunct government agencies of Ireland

Responsibility

Shannon Heritage

See also

References

External links