TCS Morocco, which would function out of Casablanca, would be an offshoring delivery centre for the French and Spanish speaking parts of Europe and begin operations in January 2007.

TCS vice president and head for global government industry group Tanmay Chakrabarty, who signed an agreement with the Moroccan government for the project, told PTI that the unit was likely to employ nearly 500 Moroccan nationals and could rise to at least 1,000 within the next couple of years.

The company would also provide IT training services in the country that would help create over 25,000 jobs in the offshoring space by 2010 -- a target set by the Moroccan government, Chakrabarty said on the sidelines of the Fundamentals of Investment conference here.

TCS would begin by shifting its existing operations from French and Spanish speaking parts of the world, while aiming to gain more business from these countries as well as the Moroccan market.