Dodds visits Indian companies in Northern Ireland before mission to India

Economy Minister Nigel Dodds recognised the commitment of Indian companies in Northern Ireland before setting off on trade and investment mission.

Minister Dodds visited the local offices of Indian investors Firstsource and HCL BPO Services (NI) Limited this week. At HCL the Minister congratulated a number of employees who have recently marked ten years of service.

Speaking in advance of his visit to India next week, the Minister said: “Since establishing in Northern Ireland, HCL has been providing round the clock support to customers across the globe from its bases in Belfast and Armagh growing from 450 to over 2,000 staff. Firstsource is also well on its way to creating over 1,000 jobs at its Belfast and Londonderry centres.

“Investments made by international companies such as HCL and Firstsource are playing an important role in introducing new business skills to the Northern Ireland economy.”

Invest NI has offered over £61million to 26 business service centres over the past five years, leading to total investment of £247million and the planned creation of almost 7,500 jobs. This support is creating employment opportunities in areas of economic disadvantage, giving people the opportunity to develop a business skills base.

Mr Dodds continued: “We have extremely close working relationships with all of our Indian investors and, next week, I will be meeting with senior executives of both HCL and Firstsource encouraging them to identify and develop further their operations within Northern Ireland.

“My visit will also enable me to support the many local businesses which are already operating in the Indian market, and to promote Northern Ireland as an attractive location for inward investment and tourism.”

The Minister will be visiting New Delhi and Mumbai in India from 2 to 6 February for talks with business and political leaders and tourism operators.

Notes to Editors:

1. Indian companies based in Northern Ireland include, HCL, Firstsource, Polaris software Lab, Tech Mahindra and Pix Transmission.
2. Northern Ireland companies with operations in India include, FG Wilson, Mivan, Randox Laboratories, Relay Business Software, Singularity, Delta Print and Packaging, Denman International and CDE Ireland.
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