Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is expected to meet Apple chief executive Tim Cook in California later  today amid concerns about Apple’s commitment to a €850 million data project in Athenry, Co Galway.

The project cleared its final planning hurdle yesterday, after the High Court rejected an application by objectors to appeal last month’s decision to allow the project to proceed.

However, according to today’s Irish Times, Apple failed to confirm if it would go ahead.

 In a statement immediately after the verdict, the company said it would make no further comment “at this time” when specifically asked if there was a chance the Athenry scheme may not go ahead.

 It also declined to comment when asked if its 2015 commitment to building the Athenry plant still stands.

Speaking following a meeting at Microsoft headquarters in Seattle yesterday,the Taoiseach told reporters that the issue will be discussed during his meeting today with Tim Cook .

He said he’s keen to talk to them about how their operations in Ireland might be consolidated and expanded into the future.

Of course, part of that meeting, he said, will involve a discussion on the proposed data centre in Athenry. It is a project that the Government is 100 per cent behind. It is potentially the biggest investment in the west of Ireland, worth about €850 million.

 “I will be keen to speak to Apple about their commitment to that project.”

Yesterday , Mr Justice Paul McDermott rejected the application by local objectors Allan Daly and Sinead Fitzpatrick against an earlier judicial review finding that the data centre could go ahead.