Thirty businesses in Loughrea, Co Galway, have been chosen to participate in the Euro Town Project.

The selected firms will maximise their use of euro transactions over the next 15 months and share their experiences with businesses around the State through the Forfas EMU Business Awareness Campaign.

The 30 businesses selected for the project represent a cross-section of commercial activities in the town, including manufacturing, retail, tourism, entertainment and services.

To co-ordinate the project in the town, the Minister of State for Science, Technology and Commerce, Mr Noel Treacy, announced yesterday the appointment of Mr Michael Callaly of Enterprise Ireland as project manager.

"As part of the project implementation, the participants will be required to keep a diary of events and issues that impact on their changeover to the euro and on transacting business in euro," Mr Callaly said.

"From this we will identify the key issues of the changeover for Irish business and assist them to identify and implement solutions," he added.

Mr Treacy said: "There is a competitive advantage to be gained by Irish enterprise in changing over to the euro as effectively as possible. It will reduce costs and open up new markets and sources of supply."

Mr Treacy introduced a logo for the Loughrea Euro Town Project and participants may use it on their stationery.

The project, begun in March, was initiated by Loughrea Chamber of Commerce and developed under the auspices of the Forfas EMU Business Awareness Campaign.