Court challenge against Apple data centre ruling
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A High Court challenge has been brought against a decision to extend the life of a planning permission granted allowing tech giant Apple build a data centre in Co Galway.
Galway County Council was not entitled to make a decision extending planning permission to build the centre, located near Athenry, Co Galway, the High Court heard.
Apple secured permission to build the centre from An Bord Pleanála in 2016, but citing lengthy delays shelved its plans to go ahead with the development in May 2018.
The board's decision allowing Apple to build the €850m facility was the subject of a legal challenge by local residents.
That case raised important issues concerning Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) in regards to other infrastructure projects.
In 2019 the Supreme Court upheld the board's decision to grant permission, The court ruled the board was not obliged to carry out a full EIA on the entire masterplan.
The court also said it did not consider it necessary to refer the issues for ruling by the European Court of Justice.
The High Court has now heard that one of the local residents who took the earlier action, Mr Allan Daly, now seeks to challenge Galway County Council's decision to extend the duration of the original planning permission granted to Apple in 2016.