The announcement comes in the wake of the huge body-blow dealt by Halifax, which is leaving Ireland, resulting in 140 job losses locally.

Well informed sources told the Dundalk Democrat that Warner Chilcott, which specialises in women's healthcare products, is behind the announcement. The company operates in 12 countries around the world, including in Europe and North America.

A subsidiary of Warner Chilcott, Galen Chemicals, already has an operation in Ardee. Warner Chilcott also has manufacturing facilities in Larne, Northern Ireland.

The announcement will be made by Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Tanaiste Mary Coughlan, at 2.30pm today (Wednesday) in the Crowne Plaza Hotel.

She will be accompanied by Justice Minister Dermot Ahern, who has been in very close contact with the Tanaiste in recent weeks, especially since the devastating announcement by Halifax that it was leaving Ireland, a move which is putting 140 locals on the dole queue.

Speculation is rife that the pharmaceutical company will locate at the former Xerox factory, which is where the Halifax call centre is also based, but the Dundalk Democrat could not get verification of this.

Warner Chilcott has 1,115 employees in various locations in Ireland, the UK, Puerto Rico and the USA where it has its headquarters in New Jersey.

The company deals a lot with pharmaceuticals for women, and also manufactures products for neurological disorders, osteoporosis, gastroenterology, dermatology and urology.

A well-placed source described the announcement as a "significant boost" for Dundalk, especially in light of recent developments.

"These are high-end, high-quality jobs in a significant growth area. It's a cutting edge industry and this is great news for Dundalk and County Louth," the source said.

On its website, Warner Chilcott says, "The acquisition of The Procter & Gamble Company's global branded pharmaceuticals business on October 30, 2009 transformed Warner Chilcott into a global pharmaceuticals company with significant scale and geographic reach."

Warner Chilcott is listed on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange and trades under the symbol WCRX.