Plans have been announced for a state-of-the-art greenfield manufacturing facility in Kilkenny.

Global healthcare firm Abbott unveiled intentions to build the new facility, along with additional plans to further invest in its Donegal Diabetes Care site.

Abbott is investing €440 million in its latest development plans, creating 1,000 jobs between the two sites.

The project is supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland.

The new 250,000 sq ft state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, which will be located on the IDA Business and Technology Park in Loughboy, Kilkenny, subject to planning permission, will give Abbott the capacity to substantially increase production of its FreeStyle Libre technology for people with diabetes.

Speaking about today's announcement, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said: "This new investment by Abbott in Donegal and Kilkenny is hugely welcome news, bringing up to 1,000 highly-skilled jobs and expanded Medtech manufacturing capacity.

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"Abbott has a long and successful history, first establishing operations in Ireland in 1946, and this new investment is a great vote of confidence in the workforce here, and in this country as a place to invest. I wish all the team at Abbott every continued success in its endeavours in the years to come."

Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Leo Varadkar commented: "This is really fantastic news from Abbott. It's a real vote of confidence in Kilkenny and Donegal and what those counties have to offer. We are working hard every day to create job opportunities in every county in the country, investing in every region to create a welcoming environment for the kind of opportunities we are seeing here today. It's a major priority of mine as Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. These 1,000 new jobs are a huge boost and really speak to the strength of Abbott's 5,000 existing staff here. We never take this investment for granted. Thank you to the Abbott team."

IDA Ireland Executive Director Mary Buckley added: "Abbott has had a longstanding presence in Ireland spanning over 75 years during which the company has made a substantial and valued contribution to regional economies. This significant and transformative investment in a new greenfield manufacturing facility in Kilkenny is fantastic news for the South East Region and for Ireland. It is also most welcome and demonstrates continued commitment to its Donegal site that it will benefit from further investment and new jobs as part of this investment and jobs announcement. IDA Ireland's strategy to win investment for regional locations across Ireland includes encouraging and supporting established companies to develop additional regional sites and this is a prime example of that. This new manufacturing facility will deliver a substantial boost to the economy of the South East. I wish the company continued success."