Delta Print and Packaging is to invest £17.3 million sterling in an expansion which will create an extra 150 jobs in west Belfast. The company plans to increase its workforce from over 100 to 260 by 1999. Delta produces and prints cartons for the Irish, British and European markets. The expansion is being supported by the Industrial Development Board. Delta is to build a new plant by 1999 beside its existing factory on the Kennedy-Way Industrial Estate on the Blackstaff Road in west Belfast. The investment will bring state-of-the-art technology to Delta Print, said its managing director, Mr Terry Cross.

The investment in west Belfast, which is an employment black spot, is also receiving funding from the European Peace and Reconciliation Fund. The Sinn Fein MP for West Belfast, Mr Gerry Adams, "warmly welcomed" the expansion. It proved that west Belfast was a "viable and attractive location for major industry", he said.

"Delta Print is a tremendous example of the innovation and creativity of the people of west Belfast, and of the business potential which this area holds for investors," he added.

Mr Cross said the current print and packaging plant was already the most advanced in these islands. The IDB is providing £4.5 million of grant aid while the Peace Fund is supplying £520,000.

Delta's current customers include household names such as Reckitt and Colman, Lyons Tea, Braun, Motorola, Polaroid, and McDonald's. Delta now hopes to win new blue-chip customers in pharmaceuticals, feminine hygiene and frozen foods. Mr Bruce Robinson, chief executive of the IDB, said the achievements of Delta were an "example of the business potential of west Belfast".