This profile, prepared in the course of START (Secretariat Technical Assistance to Regions in Transition) technical assistance, outlines regional characteristics. The Midlands region consists of four counties, Laois, Offaly, Longford and Westmeath and has a population of 324,600 inhabitants – making up 6.15% of the total Irish population. It is located in the centre of Ireland and is mostly rural. The most important sectors in terms of employment are health and social work activities, wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles and industry. For more than 75 years, peat was a key resource for energy generation in Ireland. Peat harvesting and burning activities in the Midlands were monopolised by the semi-state-owned Bord na Móna and ESB companies – which remain important employers in the region.
Authors
- Catalogue number
- MJ-05-24-521-EN-N
- Citation
- European Commission: Directorate-General for Energy, Regional profile – Midlands, Ireland , Publications Office of the European Union, 2024, https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2833/05781
- DOI
- https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2833/05781
- ISBN
- 978-92-68-18262-8
- Pages
- 11
- Published in
- Belgium
- Themes
- Coal — Hydrocarbons , Regional policy and regional economies
Table of Contents
- Country Midlands 3
- Region Name Ireland 3
- Region NUTS2 code IE06 - Eastern and Midlands 3
- Region NUTS3 code IE063 - Midlands Region 3
- Main urban centres in the region 3
- Portlaoise 21225 3
- Athlone 21398 3
- Mullingar 22276 3
- Tullamore 15470 3
- Longford 11347 3
- Regional socio-economic profile 4
- General description of the socio- economic profile of the region 4
- Regional and local transition strategies and plans 5
- Status and timeline of peat transitionphase-out 5
- Current regional strategies and plans for transition including for economic development diversification and decarbonisation 6
- Principal actors in development and implementation of transition strategies and plans 6
- Regional and local transition projects and initiatives 6
- Notable ongoing and recent transition- related initiatives and projects 6
- Notable planned transition-related initiatives and projects 7
- Regional and local transition challenges and opportunities 8
- Nature and scale of key transition challenges 8
- Nature and scale of key transition opportunities 8
- Sources 9
