An Taisce is appealing a Kildare County Council decision to grant planning permission for a proposed €2 billion investment by the chipmaker Intel Ireland.

The appeal, submitted to An Bord Pleanála by the environmental and heritage lobby group, will delay the project for months and could undermine Ireland's ability to win new investment, according to some technology observers.

This week, Intel said it would build its next chip making plant in Arizona. However, there is speculation that the firm is planning to announce a new facility later this year. Ireland is likely to compete against plants in Israel and the US for this new investment.

An Intel spokeswoman downplayed the impact of the appeal on the Irish firm's ability to win a new investment from its parent.

"Intel Ireland does not comment on speculation or unannounced investment decisions," she said. "The Irish management team continue to make options available to the corporation for investment in Ireland."

An Taisce is objecting to the construction of the chip fabrication plant because it could cause traffic problems in Leixlip, where Intel already employs 3,600 staff.

It is also objecting to Intel's plan to maintain spoil (building) material on the Intel site in Leixlip, which could impact on the valley flood plain. It is also objecting to the lack of plans to increase waste water treatment capacity, according to the appeal by An Taisce, which has been seen by The Irish Times.

The appeal against the Intel project in Kildare could also form part of a new campaign by An Taisce against investment projects that do not conform to new county development plans.

Representatives from An Taisce will meet IDA Ireland officials today to discuss a range of national and regional strategic planning issues. The body has already written to the IDA chief executive, Seán Dorgan, warning that another €1 billion investment project in Galway could fall foul of traffic policy.

"The fundamental problem is that IDA Ireland is continuing to plan urban fringe campus type schemes which are based on the US "Sun Belt" model of unlimited car dependence," says a new An Taisce submission to the IDA.

An Taisce is urging the IDA to open a new railway station to serve its proposed new business park in Oranmore, Galway, which is expected to become a multibillion-euro biotechnology campus in the future.

ICT Ireland, a lobby group representing the technology sector, said it was very concerned about delays in the planning process in Ireland and their impact on the sector. "Delays and uncertainty in the planning process have a negative impact on our competitiveness," said a spokeswoman.