Sainsbury's is set to invest in excess of £50m in two new stores in Carrickfergus and Londonderry.

The announcement will see the purchase of an existing Co-operative store in Carrickfergus and subject to planning permission, a second Sainsbury's store in Londonderry at Crescent Link in the Waterside area.

While exact numbers are not yet finalised there are plans in place to create a significant number of new jobs in Londonderry.

There will also be an opportunity for all employees at the existing Co-Op in Carrick to stay on as Sainsbury's 'colleagues' with the possibility of additional job creation at this site also.

Chris Templeman, Head of Property Development at Sainsbury's said: "We are delighted to announce further investment in Northern Ireland.

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"We are due to open our eleventh store in west Belfast towards the end of the summer and Carrickfergus will be the twelfth.

"The new flagship store in Derry will follow when we have received planning permission.

"It will be located at Crescent Link and is an integral part of a strategic mixed use development by Orana Group subsidiary GML (NI) Limited," he said.

"All our existing NI stores are trading well despite the difficult economic climate. We will continue to deliver on our commitment to local sourcing at these new stores which means there will be further opportunities for local suppliers.

"Our regional buying team currently source in excess of £250 million worth of local produce every year and that is set to grow," he continued.

Sainsbury’s is also awaiting the outcome of a planning decision on a proposed store at Balloo in Bangor, Co Down which would bring the total number of stores to 14 and make Sainsbury's one of the largest employers in Northern Ireland.

See: Jobs Boost As Sainsbury's Expand Curley's Site

(BMcC/KMcA)