Apple Irish Datacentre Gets Approval

The Irish High Court has a decision on Apple's plan to build a datacentre in the country, Reuters reports-- construction can go ahead, bringing relief for both the iPhone maker and the Irish government.

Apple Ireland datacentreApple announced it was going to invest €850 million in a datacentre in Derrydonnell, Galway county back in February 2015. The local council gave planning permission 6 months later but a series of appeals blocked the works for over 2 years.

Most recently residents attempted to stop the construction on November 2016, as they insisted the permission granted by the An Bord Pleanála planning authority was invailid. According to the allegations, the authority failed to do a proper impact assessment. This lead to Apple (successfully) asking the High Court to fast-track the case.

Apple even got to meet with the Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, and now government is considering a planning law amendment to turn datacentres into strategic infrastructure, allowing for a quicker planning process.

Go Irish Court Gives $1 Billion Apple Datacentre Green Light (Reuters)