No airline is more strongly associated with Dublin Airport than Ryanair, so it may be no surprise that the low-cost carrier is investing in more facilities for its own use there.

As plant machinery moved onto the construction site, the first bit of turf was ceremonially cut to kick-start work on the new €40 million maintenance facility, which when finished will measure 120,000 sq ft and provide 200 new jobs for engineers and mechanics.

Ryanair said the facility will also be one of the greenest of its type in the EU, with the use of gas absorption heat pumps cutting energy use by more than a third. It will complement efforts to cut pollution through the delivery of the new Boeing 737-800, which emits 16 per cent less carbon than its predecessors.

Chief operating officer Neal McMahon commented: “As Ireland’s No.1 airline, we are pleased to turn the sod today on our new aircraft maintenance facility at Dublin Airport, which will see Ryanair invest a further €40 million in Dublin.”

Investments in new facilities at Dublin Airport may help Ryanair expand its operations, which may be useful if more visitors want to fly into Dublin to see new developments and attractions.

As the city prepares to host the Open House Europe Summit, a gathering of architects from across the continent, one of those responsible for the redevelopment of the Temple Bar area 35 years ago has said the city is ripe for more redevelopment and regeneration projects, RTE reports.

Yvonne Farrell, who worked for architects Group 91 on the Temple Bar scheme after plans had been hatched to turn it into a bus depot, said: "It has lived up to the fact that it's alive and vibrant and not destroyed,” although she acknowledged that it has a larger commercial element and smaller residential aspect than hoped.

She said for new projects to be successful in the city centre required a better “balance” between these elements.