Games giant decides on new Galway base

Date Published: 01-Dec-2011

BY ENDA CUNNINGHAM

Hundreds of new jobs are set to be created in Galway City next Spring when American online gaming giant ZeniMax Online Studios opens a new facility in Rahoon.

The company will create at least 200 jobs – with the potential for hundreds more – in the former Connacht Laundry/National Linen premises in the Rahoon Business Park.

It has sought planning permission for a change of use of the industrial building to technology office use, and provide more than 4,200 square metres of space on the ground floor and 209 sq.m. on the first floor.

At the moment, the company employs a handful of people at a temporary premises in the Queensgate building at the Docks.

Planning permission for the Rahoon facility is expected to be granted before the end of the year, followed by a three-month fit-out.

Jim Murren, Western Regional Manager of the IDA told the Galway City Tribune: “It’s a positive move. They have identified the building and signed a lease, and if planning permission is granted, it would take around three months to fit it out to their high standard.

“So, by mid-April, we will see the jobs coming online, hundreds of them,” said Mr Murren.

He said the facility will provide technical support for online videogamers, a massive industry worth billions of dollars each year.

“It will be an operations centre providing support online, but of course, there is room for them to move into software development, and create even more jobs. That’s the hope,” he said.

Matt Firor, President of ZeniMax said: “The company’s new facility will provide customer support for players of their future massively multiplayer online games and is expected to result in the creation of hundreds of jobs over the next several years.

“We are excited to be building an experienced team, which will focus on providing superior customer support for our games. Galway has world-class educational facilities, is a beautiful place to work and live, and offers a wide variety of benefits for our employees,” he said.

For more on this story, see the Galway City Tribune.