The CEO of Ryanair, Michael O’Leary, contends that Transport Minister Eamon Ryan directly intervened in a dispute related to a contentious gas project, yet declined to address Dublin Airport’s annual passenger capacity of 32 million. The minister’s inaction on the passenger cap, citing it as a planning issue, has caused tension between the two, leading to a scheduled meeting on Thursday to discuss this issue.
Previously, Mr. Ryan worked to resolve a disagreement involving Shannon LNG, a multinational company planning to construct a liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant in Ballylongford, Co Kerry with an estimated cost of €650 million. This intervention involved a letter from Mr. Ryan to the planning appeals institution, An Bord Pleanála.
According to Mr. O’Leary, this gives them the opportunity to ask Mr. Ryan when he will take similar steps to address Dublin’s unreasonable traffic limit, as he did with the Shannon LNG issue in 2022.
A report from the Business Post in January 2022 asserted that Mr. Ryan had personally interfered with Shannon LNG’s planning application. He expressed his perspective on the matter in a written communication to An Bord Pleanála, declaring that establishing LNG gas import terminals didn’t seem logical.
Following this intervention, the appeals board denied Shannon LNG’s request in September. Nevertheless, the company’s owner, New Fortress, based in the US, remains committed to the project and plans to challenge the refusal in the High Court.
In their first engagement with the Minister, Mr. O’Leary said he’ll present Ryanair’s strategy to increase their Irish operations by 50%, aiming for 30 million yearly passengers by 2030. They also plan to discuss the company’s intent to achieve a net-zero carbon emission status by 2050.
Looking forward, Mr. O’Leary anticipates hearing about Minister Ryan’s growth strategies under his National Aviation Policy, as for the past four years, no such plans have been apparent.
As for Mr. Ryan, he has expressed to journalists his intention to clarify to Mr. O’Leary that as minister, he can’t simply interfere in the planning system and impose a desired outcome.
Fingal County Council is in the midst of deliberating over an application submitted by Dublin Airport’s operator, DAA, to increase the cap to 40 million. The minster recognized Ryanair’s substantial progress in striving for net zero emissions, but emphasised that the aviation sector still had its role to play in parallel with other industries in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Several recent remarks by Mr O’Leary, both made personally and through his organisation’s social media, were described as “personally abusive” by Mr Ryan. Responding to queries about the impending meeting, the leader of the Green Party claimed he would utilise the opportunity to clarify some potentially misunderstood areas.