JD WETHERSPOON WILL sell their three pubs, in Cork, Waterford and Carlow and a site in Galway city centre with an asking price of €10m.

The four sites are The Linen Weaver in Cork City, An Geata Arundel in Waterford City, The Tullow Gate in Carlow and the former Carbon nightclub in Galway, which has now been granted permission to become a licensed premises and restaurant.

It is not clear what will change for the staff of the premises, but company spokesman Eddie Gershon said the pubs were being sold as “going concerns” and he “hopes that there will be continuing employment opportunities in the same pubs”.

Going concern means the pubs have the resources to continue operating for the foreseeable future.

If any staff were to lose their jobs, Gershon said the company was “happy to offer employment in our remaining pubs to anyone working in the pubs that are being sold”.

He blamed the pandemic for the sale, saying it had a big impact on the hospitality industry, and Wetherspoons wasn’t immune.

“We’ve decided, in Ireland, to concentrate on Dublin and Belfast and intend to review the situation in a year or two, when profits are back to pre-pandemic levels,” he said.

JD Wetherspoon operates nine pubs in the Republic of Ireland and three in Northern Ireland and are known for their low-priced pints and pub grub.

The UK-based pub giant was, as recently as 2019, planning to expand with a £200 million investment across the UK and Ireland.

To sell the properties, the company has engaged the services of Savills and CBRE, which valued the portfolio in excess of €10m.

Savills said each of the pubs has “undergone extensive refurbishment and present in turnkey condition,” while the Galway site would appeal to developers, considering its city centre location.

The properties are being sold by private treaty as one lot or separate lots.