Intel has secured planning permission for a massive extension to its factory in Leixlip, Co Kildare, which will enable it to compete for as much as $4bn (€3.6bn) of investment in the future.
Its good news for Leixlip, which has been hit in the past year by hundreds of job losses at Intel and Hewlett-Packard.
However, a spokeswoman for the company said there are no plans to build at the Kildare site.
Planning applications are a “normal and prudent part of our regular business practice”, she said.
Intel Ireland vies with other Intel sites for investment within the business, and planning permission means it could expand faster if required.
“It is a prudent measure for Intel to have flexible options available to allow them to be responsive,” Intel planners said in their application.
Last month, Intel announced that it was restarting a project to invest $7bn to finish a chip facility in Arizona.
US president Donald Trump claimed credit for the decision, but the plan was originally announced back in 2011 and had been put on hold.
Intel has invested about €12bn in its Leixlip campus to date, with roughly 4,500 people employed at the vast site.
If the new facility goes ahead, it could create 3,000 construction jobs and employ as many as 850 full-time staff.
Source: Independent