Paper buys up Press building

THE Irish Times has purchased the old Irish Press building at Burgh Quay, Dublin for an undisclosed sum. Mr Louis O'Neill, group managing director and deputy chief executive, announcing the acquisition, said the company availed of an opportunity as "we need to plan our future, particularly the replacement of the printing press".

The site, he added, has a "press room with extensive foundation in existence that would meet all our future requirements". Mr O'Neill noted that it "would not be a good option to develop a press room" on the company's existing site "because it would be far too costly and hugely disruptive of our business over a considerable length of time". The purchase has been a "strategic investment".

Asked about refurbishing the building, he said there were no immediate plans. "We will consider various options in due course."

The 45,000 sq ft building is located in an urban renewal area which entitles the owner to tax breaks on refurbishing expenditure. The company, said Mr O'Neill, was aware of the tax advantages but "that was not the primary consideration in making the purchase". Asked about the asbestos in the building, he said: "We intend to clear it out of the building and we have estimates of how that can be done." The costs associated with this clearance are "reasonable because the building is unoccupied".

There is no connection between the acquisition and any proposed Sunday newspaper. He stressed that no final decision had been made on such a publication.

The Burgh Quay premises were purchased from property developer, Mr David Arnold, who purchased it for around £1.3 million from the liquidator Mr Tom Grace last month. Asked why the company had not purchased the building directly from the liquidator, who had put it out to tender, Mr O'Neill said: "We decided not to buy it from the liquidator at that time because we considered it more prudent to deal with the successful tenderer."