European Financial Services Centre to be located in Belfast

Belfast, October 15th 2009

Norfolkline is to locate its European Financial Services Centre in Belfast, and at a reception to launch the centre attended by Arlene Foster (Enterprise Minister at the Northern Ireland Assembly) & Lars Olsen (Norfolkline Group CFO), Minister Foster also announced Invest Northern Ireland’s support for the new centre.

Thirty people are already engaged in finance based activities for Norfolkline in Belfast, with a further 360 employees working in logistics and ferry services, and by centralising European finance activities in the new centre, approximately 60 new jobs will be created over the next 12-18 months, bringing total employment at the Finance Service Centre to around 90.

Invest NI has offered £376,000 of support toward the project which will return an additional £1 million in wages and salaries annually for the locality

Minister Foster said:

"Norfolkline is a highly respected ferry operator and logistics management company which will offer local people a variety of skilled career opportunities in a key industry sector.

The new Norfolkline Financial Service Centre will see existing finance administration functions, currently located in seven European countries, centralised in Belfast. The company’s decision validates the strength of the Northern Ireland value proposition.

It is a major endorsement of the strength of our growing financial services sector, and the exceptional skills base which has developed in recent years.

This is an investment which demonstrates Invest NI’s continued success in securing new, high quality investment projects at a time of economic uncertainty, and underlines this region’s cost competitiveness and proximity to European markets."

Lars Olsen, added:

"In reviewing our total cost base, it became evident that Norfolkline had opportunities to be more cost competitive by, amongst other things, establishing a European Finance Service Centre.

Through a very thorough and comprehensive process Northern Ireland was chosen as it offered the best value composition to Norfolkline. As a result, we intend to triple the number of people employed in finance roles in Belfast over the next 18 months.

Invest NI’s support was instrumental in our decision to choose this region, and our existing presence in Belfast meant that we already had experience of the highly impressive skills base."