Three hundred jobs are to be created in Cork over the next three years, the Tanaiste, Ms Harney, has announced.
A US-based corporation, Bankers Insurance Group, has decided to expand its global operation to Cork. With almost immediate effect, it will begin recruiting new staff at the IDA's technology park in the western suburbs of the city.
The company deals with unemployment and disability claims, and because of the time difference between both countries, it is understood the new Cork plant will operate around the clock.
Making the announcement, Ms Harney said a special high-speed circuit would link the Cork operation to the Miami headquarters of the American company.
She added that a wide range of high-quality jobs would be provided for people with Leaving Certificate qualifications and those who had studied English and maths in particular. There would also be opportunities for graduates in business studies.
Since the Coalition took office, Ms Harney said, investment in Cork had grown to £556 million and some 6,700 jobs had been created.
She said the decision by the American company to locate in Cork was a prestigious addition to the high number of international services projects secured by the IDA for the region in recent times. "It again endorses the success of the strategy to provide the right environment and infrastructure in locations outside Dublin, in order to win the wide range of projects now interested in Ireland. The impact of investment in third-level education and the initiatives taken by institutes of technology and universities are particularly important to provide the right skills for these developments," she said.
It is understood the Cork subsidiary will become an important part of the company's global operation.
In addition to dealing with US credit claims, the Cork plant, at Model Farm Road, will become a site for processing disaster information. This is seen as significant as the Miami headquarters is in a hurricane-prone location, and recovery claims following major incidents are processed as a priority.
Ms Harney said: "It was the availability of a suitably educated workforce that met the standards required better than other locations abroad. This was a major influencing factor in bringing American Bankers Insurance Group Inc to Cork. Other crucial influences included the proximity of an international airport, the quality infrastructure, advanced telecommunications and the cost-competitive environment."
In recent years the IDA has changed its industrial policy in Cork to ensure that following the closure in the 1970s and early 1980s of some of the city's mainstay industries, including Ford, Dunlop and Sunbeam, it would never again rely on huge employers. Since then, it has sought to attract high-tech industries to Cork.
The Apple Computer plant, despite its recent setbacks, is one example of how the strategy has worked, and the Sandoz plant at Ringaskiddy, now known as Novartis, is another.
Johnson & Johnson, one of the world leaders in the pharmaceuticals/chemicals sector, has also been attracted to Cork by the IDA in recent times.