Bridgedale takes options on €100m of development land

Housebuilder Bridgedale, which has joined forces with US private equity firm Oaktree to set up a home construction company that's been lined up for a flotation, has taken options to buy development land worth close to €100 million, according to the Sunday Times.

The deals, including some €80 million of land from US investment fund Cerberus, are subject to the flotation going ahead. The Irish Times reported last week that Bridgedale and Oaktree had set up a new firm, Glenveagh Properties, as the entity they intend to float.

McKillen buys Blackrock site from nuns

The Sunday Times also reported that property developer Patrick McKillen is paying more than €30 million for a prime residential development site in Blackrock in south Co Dublin, where he plans to build up to 300 homes.

Mr McKillen is said to have bought the 9.7-acre site off Temple Road with his son, Paddy jnr. It is being sold by the Daughters of Charity of St Vincent De Paul.

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ESB storms ahead with wind farms

The ESB is planning a major push into offshore wind farm construction that is likely to cost "billions of euro", the Sunday Independent reported.

The State-owned energy company has put out a tender seeking “the provisions of renewable energy marine services related to offshore wind farms”. It said that it is planning to develop or buy the wind farms from next year, through a pipeline of projects going through the planning process.

Aer Lingus pay rise recommendation

The Sunday Independent also reports that the Labour Court has recommended that Aer Lingus staff should be given a total pay rise of 8.8 per cent over 39 months.

The airline, owned by International Airlines Group, will be hoping that the recommendation will help break an impasse over pay, according to the newspaper. It would cost the carrier €20 million over the period, it said.

Aercap seeks tax break enhancement

Gus Kelly, chief executive of Dublin-based aircraft leasing group Aercap, has engaged with the Department of Finance seeking enhancements on tax breaks for high earners coming to work in Ireland, according to the Sunday Business Post.

The Special Assignee Relief Plan (SARP) tax relief, introduced in 2012, was enhanced in the last budget with the aim of making Ireland more attractive for overseas firms weighing the impact of Brexit. Mr Kelly is looking for the relief’s timeframe to be doubled to 10 years.

Digicel loses competition battle

The Sunday Business Post also reports that Denis O'Brien's Digicel has lost a long-running battle with Jamaica's competition authorities over its takeover of the island's third-largest mobile operator in 2011.

The British Privy Council, the final legal body for settling disputes in Commonwealth countries, decided last week that the Jamaican Fair Trade Commission (FTC) had the right to intervene in the merger between Digicel and Claro. The ruling allows the FTC to resume its challenge to the country's supreme court and may lead to asset sales.