Companies that received State assistance during the financial crisis have since invested more than €110 million in the island, according to Finance Minister Tonio Fenech.

He was speaking during a visit to Dold, a German switchgear manufacturing company with a factory at the Bulebel industrial estate.

Dold “weathered the financial storm” without receiving direct government aid but benefited from tax credits and grants to continue expanding its operations, he said.

Stressing the economic importance of manufacturing, Mr Fenech said it planned a 1,500 square metre expansion due to Malta Enterprise help.

He said industrial estates had, in the past five years, benefited from infrastructure projects worth €17 million.

Mr Fenech warned that the economy should not be taken for granted as challenges were not overcome by coincidence.

“When we talk about the financial crisis, it’s important to point out Malta was affected. The fact that we weathered the storm without any casualties does not mean we weren’t hit by what happened,” he said.

Mr Fenech added that only five EU countries increased manufacturing production since the financial crisis. Malta ranked third and exports were now exceeding imports.