The Northern Irish newspaper publisher, which became part of Johnston Press in the 155m acquisition of Score Press earlier in the summer, will print a run of the title on its 630mm cut-off 64pp Goss Universal 35 when it makes the switch.

No precise date has yet been confirmed for the autumn move, but industry sources have suggested that it could be as early as this month. An announcement  is expected later today.

The deal with Johnston Press at the Portadown plant will also bring investment in Ferag inserting, stitching and trimming kit, although it is not thought there will be any upgrade to the press.

Mortons' single-width, one-plate round press can print 24pp colour in a single pass, but sources say that the facility will match those at Newsfax and Trafford Park Printers in terms of the final product.

Sources have also confirmed that some sections of the Berliner-format Guardian will be half-Berliner size.

The title currently carries a tabloid-format magazine section, G2, and a series of high-pagination tabloid recruitment sections.

Mortons used to print The Irish News before it dropped the Berliner format for a tabloid earlier in the year, after building its own 10m print plant on the outskirts of Belfast.

The regional plant prints more than 25 weekly titles including the Ballymoney Times, the Londonderry Sentinel and the Ulster Star, with a weekly output of 200,000 copies.

Contract titles already printed at the plant include the Sunday Express, The Independent on Sunday and The Daily Star on Sunday, but this is understood to be the plant's first daily contract since the loss of The Irish News.

Story by Josh Brooks