THE European Court has cleared the way for a £157 million sterling investment in Northern Ireland by Taiwanese textile firm Hualon.

The court rejected efforts by rival textile organisations to block grant aid for the project.

Hualon announced in June 1994 it was planning to create 1,800 jobs at a new factory at Corrs Corner, outside Belfast. The IDB offered a grant of £61 million, which was approved by the European Commission.

But in January 1995 an alliance of European textile producers challenged the approval of the grant. The European Court yesterday dismissed the case.