Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 October 2017
153. Deputy Lisa Chambers asked the Minister for Education and Skills to outline the details of the project for GMIT Galway campus in view of his recent announcement of €200 million for 11 major infrastructure projects in the higher education sector; the estimated cost; and when will it be completed. [44909/17]
View answerThe GMIT project to which the Deputy refers was among those which I announced would be included in a Public Private Partnership (PPP) Programme for the higher education sector. The GMIT proposal involves the construction of a new STEM building, including labs, multi-purpose rooms, lab support rooms, seminar rooms and classrooms.
I am not in a position to release information on the cost of any individual project at this stage, given the commercial sensitivities attached to the procurement process. In any event, the final scale and scope of all the relevant projects will be subject to ongoing technical appraisal and economic analysis to ensure value for money is achieved.
It is envisaged that the first buildings in this PPP programme will become ready for occupation in 2021 and the other buildings shortly thereafter. This timeline assumes that no major delays arise, such as in relation to statutory approvals.
