Irish Trade Hits Historic Global High as Enterprise Ireland Unveils Several Local Initiatives
Thursday 13 March 2025: Companies supported by the Government of Ireland through Enterprise Ireland exported over €465 million (A$791 million) worth of goods and services to Australia and New Zealand in 2023, highlighting the thriving economic ties between the three islands that lie on either side of the world.
This significant contribution helped drive Enterprise Ireland to a record-breaking global export total of €34.57 billion, the highest in its history. The Irish Government’s enterprise development agency and Europe’s most active Venture Capitalist by deal count, the agency plans to deliver €50bn exports by 2029 as announced in the Delivering for Ireland, Leading Globally strategy announced last week.
While delivering innovation, solutions and partnerships to global markets, Irish companies are also a positive contributor to the world economy, employing 1.36 million people internationally in 2022, up from a previous high of 1.2 million people.
High Level Engagement Celebrating Growth
The flourishing and growing trade partnership is being celebrated this week with the Irish Minister for Education and Youth, Helen McEntee, T.D., leading a delegation to Australia to support Irish businesses based here and forge new connections for future trade.
Minister McEntee will visit Sydney, Melbourne, and Canberra while her colleague the Minister of State with responsibility for Public Procurement, Digitalisation and eGovernment Emer Higgins, T.D. will visit Adelaide, Perth and Brisbane. Minister of State at the Department of Rural and Community Development and at the Department of Transport Jerry Buttimer, T.D. will visit New Zealand. During the visit, the Ministers will meet with key industry leaders, government representatives, and commercial stakeholders to explore opportunities for enhanced economic cooperation.
Minister for Education and Youth Helen McEntee says, “Despite the distance from Ireland, every year we see the deep and enduring trade relationship between Ireland and the Australian and New Zealand region grow even stronger. Over 40 Enterprise Ireland companies are involved in a variety of trade events across the region this week which is testament to that growing relationship. We really enjoy doing business here with our shared values, cultural affinity, language and open economies and I am very pleased to see that demand for Irish innovation from local companies, particularly for technology, industrial technology and life sciences solutions is at an all-time high here, with these sectors experiencing double digit growth locally.
“The Government will continue to support Irish exporting companies to grow, to create more jobs and to win new markets, including here in Australia. We are very proud of the cutting-edge products and services that Ireland is taking to the world and excited to celebrate that here in Australia during the day, or week, that the world turns green!”
Milestone Announcements and Strategic Expansions
Several Enterprise Ireland clients are expanding their presence in the region, with major client partnerships and investments announced today.
I Am Here and Allianz – supporting the mental health and wellbeing of Australian educators
I Am Here, the individual and workplace mental health and wellbeing program, has partnered with Allianz Australia to create Education Elevation, a national Community of Practice focused on supporting the mental health and wellbeing of individuals working in early childhood, primary, secondary, and tertiary education sectors.
Transit9 and Transdev – award-winning work on Parramatta Light Rail
Transit9, who digitise operations, safety and employee management for transport organisations, has partnered with Transdev to support the successful launch and operation of the Parramatta Light Rail, providing cutting-edge digital solutions to enhance operational efficiency, safety, and passenger experience for the growing Western Sydney region. This collaboration was recently recognised at the Global Light Rail Awards and builds on Transit9’s ongoing work with Transdev Sydney Light Rail, and global light rail projects.
DP Energy – to power up to 130,000 Queensland households and reduce greenhouse gas emissions
DP Energy, an Irish company that develops large renewable energy generation projects in Australia and across the world, has been granted EPBC approval from the Australian Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water for Callide Wind Farm, a renewable energy project with a capacity of 430MW. Upon completion, the wind farm will produce enough energy to power around 130,000 average Queensland households and will support Queensland’s target of a 30% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.
Prodigy Learning and Minecraft Education
Prodigy Learning, in partnership with Minecraft Education, recently released ‘AI Ready Skills’ which develops and proves students’ skills in the evolving world of Artificial Intelligence. It builds on the successes of ‘Coding in Minecraft’, which focuses on developing coding skills, and ‘Cyber in Minecraft’, which focusses on cyber security education. These programs engage young learners through game-based learning and reward their learning with credentials. They are easy to teach, empowering educators with a comprehensive, future-focused curriculum that provides skills for in-demand job roles, building the workforce of tomorrow and creating economic opportunity. The Minister for Education and Youth will visit Rosebank College in Sydney to see the programs in action.
Allsorter and Randstad – improving the workflow and speed of recruitment across the region
Allsorter is celebrating the expansion of their partnership with Randstad UK into Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Singapore, empowering recruiters across the region with seamless, efficient CV reformatting capabilities that are drastically improving workflow efficiencies, branding consistency, and candidate speed-to-market.
Local Investment
Kubicle is expanding its global presence with a new office in Australia to meet growing demand for data, technology, and AI upskilling. As a trusted provider for enterprises like the Big 4 accounting firms, LEK, Oliver Wyman, and Heineken, Kubicle equips professionals with essential data skills through expert-led On-Demand content and real-world applications. "The Australian market presents a significant opportunity for Kubicle to help businesses stay ahead with cutting-edge data and AI capabilities," says Ian Allen, Head of Business Development. "We’re excited to support organisations in building data-driven cultures and driving innovation at scale."
Also opening an office in Melbourne, is Catalyst a leading global provider of software and professional services to the construction and real estate industries.
42Crunch, the platform that automates API security testing and threat protection is opening an office in Melbourne due to local demand.
Over 40 Enterprise Ireland clients with a presence in Australia and New Zealand are involved in a variety of trade engagements this week including EngageHub, LearnUpon, Glen Dimplex, Superfy and Aerogen.
Looking to a Greener Future
While this visit is a celebration of the strong and successful partnerships that have already emerged between Irish and Australasian firms, the Ministers will meet with key industry leaders, government representatives, and commercial partners to explore opportunities for enhanced economic cooperation during their visits. The continued investment in this relationship by the Irish Government and its agencies underscores Ireland’s commitment to fostering sustainable and mutually beneficial relationships moving forward.
Lydia Rogers Enterprise Ireland’s Director of Australia and New Zealand says, “Enterprise Ireland last week announced our new strategy to 2029, the ambition of which is to support enterprise to start, compete, scale and ultimately connect globally.
“It’s inspiring to see such strong links and commercial partnerships that have already emerged between Ireland and Australia/ New Zealand, and we look forward to continuing to strengthen these relationships even more into the future. As island nations, we are like-minded, with open economies and pro international cooperation, and this region is an important and growing trading partner.
“For a small country, we deliver an outsized impact globally. This St. Patrick’s Day, it’s this that we celebrate: the strong partnerships Irish companies have forged with the business community across the world and the positive contribution and value that Irish companies are delivering to economies, driving innovation, and building a sustainable, prosperous future for all”.
ENDS
Key Facts:
· Enterprise Ireland-supported companies exported over €465 million (A$791 million) in goods and services to Australia and New Zealand in 2023 (latest figures)
· Double digit growth was recorded in industrial, life sciences, technology, and services sectors
· Enterprise Ireland recorded its highest global export figures in history of €34.57 billion in 2023
· Enterprise Ireland plans to achieve €50bn exports globally by 2029
· Over 40 Enterprise Ireland companies involved in a variety of trade engagements across the region this week with three Irish Ministers
· The visit celebrates multiple new local office openings, contract signings and partnerships in Australia for Enterprise Ireland supported companies
About us:
About Enterprise Ireland: Enterprise Ireland is the Irish government’s agency responsible for the development and growth of Irish companies in global markets. We invest in the most innovative Irish companies through all stages of their growth and connect them to international customers across multiple industries. Our goal is to build successful, long-term business relationships between international companies and Irish partners. With 40 offices worldwide, Enterprise Ireland’s teams of industry experts consult with international businesses to understand and solve their business needs. https://www.enterprise-ireland.com/
Contact details:
Louise Nealon, PR With Purpose,
0403 569 177
