Premier announces planned opening of new business in Corner Brook

Premier Beaton Tulk announced today at a news conference that ICT Group Inc. (NASDAQ:ICTG) is planning to open a customer contact centre in Corner Brook which is expected to create approximately 300 new jobs in the area.

The customer contact centre, which is expected to be located in the Millbrook Mall on Herald Avenue, will handle service calls for clients in the financial and insurance industries. It is expected to open in the early part of 2001.

"I am very pleased to announce ICT Group�s plans for Corner Brook," said Premier Tulk. "Government is committed to attracting new business and creating economic opportunities for regions throughout Newfoundland and Labrador and I look forward to seeing the benefits that this company can bring to the area."

Also on hand for the news conference were Sandra C. Kelly, Minister of Industry, Trade and Technology, Frank Fagan, president of NewTel and senior vice-president for Aliant Telecom, Paul Pierce, vice president and general manager of teleservices with ICT Group and Corner Brook Mayor Dave Luther.

"ICT Group�s plans for Corner Brook represent an important step in building a stronger province-wide customer contact industry," said Minister Kelly. "I am confident that this company will be pleased with all of the business advantages our province has to offer, including skilled people, a strategic location, and a business environment that supports economic development."

ICT Group Inc., based in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, employs more that 7,500 people worldwide and operates more than 40 marketing customer contact centres in the U.S, Canada, Europe and Australia. Its other Canadian locations include New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. It serves clients in North America, South America, Europe and the Pacific Rim. The company offers outsourced customer relationship management contact solutions to companies operating in insurance, financial services, healthcare, telecommunications, energy, media and information technology and transportation and hospitality industries as well as a growing base of e-business providers. The company also offers its full suite of customer relationship management (CRM) services on a hosted basis, available for use by clients at their own in-house facility or in conjunction with ICT Groups�s fully compatible web-enabled customer contact centres.

"An available and willing workforce of educated and motivated people who have a reputation for strong performance makes Corner Brook a very attractive location for ICT Group," said Paul Pierce, ICT Group.

NETWORK Newfoundland and Labrador, a public/private partnership between the provincial government and NewTel, which was established in 1995 to attract customer contact centre operations to the province, worked closely with the company and will assist with the process of setting up its operation here.

"NETWORK Newfoundland and Labrador worked very closely with ICT Group, evaluating the company�s needs and demonstrating the benefits of locating in Newfoundland and Labrador," said Frank Fagan of Newtel. "It is gratifying to see our joint efforts result in the creation of so many employment possibilities for the people on the west coast of the province. We are also very pleased to work with a company that shares our belief in a bright economic future for Newfoundland and Labrador."

"The City of Corner Brook, working in partnership with the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, NETWORK, and stakeholders in the economic development sector, have been aggressively pursuing the establishment of a customer contact centre in our city for the last several years," said Corner Brook Mayor Dave Luther. "We are very pleased that the ICT Group plans to locate its next centre in Corner Brook and we welcome the new industry into our city. Corner Brook has a very skilled and eager workforce capable of meeting the needs of the industry and we are confident that the establishment of this centre will enhance the economic environment in the city."

ICT Group plans to hold a formal recruitment drive early in the new year. However, applicants can forward their resumes in advance via fax to: Stephanie Richard, recruiting manager, ICT Group, (506) 867-9059.

Media contact:

Jacqueline Simon, Communications, Industry, Trade and Technology, (709) 729-0050
Karen Arsenault, Vice-President of Marketing, ICT Group, (215) 702-2092
Brenda M. Reid, Public Relations Manager, NewTel, (709) 739-2503.

2000 12 21 1:05 p.m.