THREE HUNDRED high-value jobs will be created over the next three years in Cork by business processing company Abtran.

The jobs, which will be based in Abtran’s call centre operation just outside Cork city, will be in management, business administration, finance, resource planning, IT and human resources. The posts, which will be in place by 2012, will be a direct result of a €3.5 million investment by the company, backed by Enterprise Ireland.

Abtran is one of Ireland’s largest business process outsourcers. With its headquarters in Cork, it is a major employer in the area, with more than 1,000 employees.

It holds contracts with some of the largest private companies and public sector agencies in the State, including ESB, BSkyB, Aviva and An Post, and offers a range of services including document managing, sales, application processing and appointment setting.

The job announcement follows a €6 million investment in the company’s learning and innovation centre in Cork last year by Enterprise Ireland, which led to the creation of 250 jobs.

Announcing the jobs yesterday, the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation, Batt O’Keeffe, said Abtran was “a significant employer and leading supplier of business outsourcing processes”.

He stressed the international dimension of the company, which was becoming recognised globally as a leading company in its field.

The company – through its emphasis on export growth and high-value employment – typified the kind of enterprise the Government was encouraging as part of its vision as the “smart economy”.