Bedminster International, which uses a biological process to convert biodegradable waste to a high quality biofuel, or compost, has won a 20-year, €150 million contract from New York's WeCare Holdings to treat municipal waste in the city of Marlboro, Massachusetts.
It was one of three deals worth €160 million announced yesterday by the Taoiseach on his visits to the United Nations in New York.
Bedminster International, which has its headquarters in Dublin, is owned by Oyster Capital, a diversified investment company whose chairman and majority shareholder is e-learning entrepreneur Mr Bill McCabe.
Bedminster International acquired the world rights to the Bedminster technology in June 2003, including all intellectual property, patents and trademarks.
There are 12 Bedminster plants operating throughout North America, Australia and Japan and others planned in North America, the UK and Ireland, including one in Portlaw, Co Waterford.
Earlier this month Goldman Sachs, the international investment banking firm, made an initial equity investment in the business.
Mr McCabe said yesterday: "Bedminster's technology offers a unique solution to two ever-increasing global issues - waste treatment and energy generation."
"Our technology is an environmentally-friendly solution to the waste problem and, in addition, an opportunity to produce fossil-free renewable energy," he explained.
WeCare Holdings is a waste management group headquartered in Jordan, NY, with several waste operations throughout the northeast US and a turnover in excess of $50 million (€39 million).
The Taoiseach also welcomed the securing by Information Mosaic of a significant deal with the Mellon Financial Corporation to provide a fully integrated suite of middle and back office business applications. Information Mosaic provides high-volume applications to the global financial markets industry.
Candidate Manager, which provides recruitment software to Human Resources managers, announced an expansion of its US operation that will see the company open six new offices, in Philadelphia, Atlanta, Chicago, San Diego, New York and Austin.
Speaking at an Enterprise Ireland event in New York to mark the signing of the new contracts, Mr Ahern praised the skill with which Irish companies had exploited the opportunities available in the US market.
"The growth and success of Irish companies in the US is driven by their deep knowledge of the market and their customer needs, together with the innovative capability to deliver the products and services their customers want," he said.
Enterprise Ireland says that Irish companies now employ more than 50,000 people in 300 offices throughout the US, with 50 new offices opening in the last 18 months. According to the Centre for Transatlantic Relations, Ireland is the ninth largest investor in the US market.
Enterprise Ireland's America director Marina Donohue predicted that Irish companies would continue to expand in the US during the coming months.
"The success of Irish companies in the US shows strong capability in software, on-line services and environmental in a market which leads globally in these key sectors. We anticipate that Irish companies will continue to grow their sales and business partnerships in this key export market during 2006," she said.
The Taoiseach said that the story of Irish investment and exporting success in the US is less well known than the role of US investment in the Irish economy.
"Ireland ranks as the 11th largest exporter to the US, higher than Brazil, India and the Netherlands. All of this has been the result of a lot of hard work and creativity," he said.
