Major tower company has application turned down by Kilkenny County Council

Vantage Towers Limited have been denied planning permission to remove a 12.6 metres tall telecoms tower and erect a 24 metres tall telecoms tower on the same site at Whitescastle Lower, Knocktopher, County Kilkenny.

The applicant had sought permission from Kilkenny County Council 'for the erection of a 24m lattice telecommunications support structure on a 1.4 metre high raised foundation (providing an overall height of 25.4 metres) together with associated antennas and dishes and to remove the existing 12.6 metre lattice telecommunications structure with antennas and dish'.

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The planning application noted that the 'proposed development is all enclosed within an existing compound'.

Planning permission was refused by the planning authority on October 6, 2025.

The applicant retains the ability to appeal the decision to An Coimisiún Pleanála.

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According to the cover letter attached to the application, "Vantage Towers is one of Europe’s leading tower companies created by the Vodafone Group in 2020.

"As an independent Company [sic], today Vantage owns, operates, and manages 82,000 towers across 10 countries where it is usually the leading or second largest supplier.

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"It owns 1,300 masts in Ireland and combines the scale, stability, and quality of a leading tower network to provide infrastructure and technologies for Vodafone and other communications operators in an ever-changing and increasingly
digital world."

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