Businessman In €10.3M Dispute With HSE Over Unused Covid Ventilators Lands Prestigious K Club Deal

Thursday, 16 January 2025 at 14:37

By Martin Osborne

Robert Quirke’s new company, Eco Hydro, was hired to restore the club's hydroelectric generator, which uses the River Liffey to power the resort

A man whose festival management company is in dispute with the HSE over €10.3m worth of unused covid ventilators has secured a contract with the K Club golf resort in Straffan.

Robert Quirke’s new company, Eco Hydro, was hired to restore the club's hydroelectric generator, which uses the River Liffey to power the resort.

Quirke, previously linked to Roqu Media International, made headlines when his company received €14.1m from the HSE for 328 ventilators, only 72 of which were delivered from China.

They failed to meet clinical standards.

The HSE, according to the Irish Examiner, is still in a dispute with Roqu and three other companies over €35m in total.

Quirke, who has remained largely low-profile, set up two new companies in 2023.

The K Club’s newly refurbished hydroelectric generator, expected to cover 70% of the resort’s electricity needs, was launched before Christmas, with Quirke attending alongside Finance Minister Jack Chambers.

A defamation lawsuit Quirke filed against Web Summit founder Paddy Cosgrave was recently dismissed in the High Court after Quirke failed to respond to court contacts for over a year.

The action stemmed from a 2021 tweet in which Cosgrave accused Quirke of misusing taxpayer money on luxury cars.