1,500 jobs predicted in 100+ 'high potential' start-ups

1,500 new jobs are expected to come on stream over the next three years at over 100 start up companies.

Enterprise Ireland is supporting the 102 "high potential start-ups", in a range of sectors, and is promising the jobs will be split "roughly" 50-50 between Dublin and the rest of the country.

The high potential start-ups are in areas including software, medical devices and pharmaceuticals, engineering, food and consumer products.

Enterprise Ireland's competitive start-up fund has also given funding support to 81 early-stage businesses in 2014. The fund is targeted at export-based companies which are likely to earn annual sales of €1 million.

Last year also saw the highest ever number of female start-up founders being supported, at 43.

More than half of the HPSU companies are in Dublin, with 18 others across the south and south east and the rest across the mid-west and mid-east, border counties, the west and midlands.

Many of the companied would be focused on international markets, and they're servicing those international markets from Ireland," said Kevin Sherry from Enterprise Ireland.

"So whether they're from Cork or Galway or Dublin - it really doesn't matter to them, so long as they have the capability and the resources to develop and grow the business."