Companies assisted during the financial crisis have since invested more than €110 million on the island, according to Finance Minister Tonio Fenech.

He made the announcement during a visit to Dold, a German switchgear manufacturing company with a factory in the Bulebel industrial estate.

Dold “weathered the financial storm” without the help of direct government aid but benefited from several tax credits and grants to continue to expand its operations, according to Mr Fenech.

Stressing the economic importance of manufacturing, Mr Fenech said the company was planning a 1,500 square metre expansion thanks to assistance provided by Malta Enterprise.  

Mr Fenech said Bulebel and other industrial estates had in the past five years benefited from infrastructure projects worth €17 million.

He also pointed out the importance of the childcare centre operating from Bulebel which caters for many mothers working in manufacturing.

Mr Fenech warned that Malta’s economy should not be taken for granted because challenges were not overcome by coincidence.

“When we talk about the financial crisis it’s important to point out that Malta was hit. Just because we managed to weather the storm and just because there were no casualties, does not mean we weren’t hit by what happened,” he said.

He added that only five EU countries managed to increase their manufacturing production since the financial crisis.

Malta ranked third among these countries and had now even started to export more than it imported.