Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said today that the Sadeen Group, which is behind the American University of Malta, has the financial clout to see the $115m project through and will be pumping 30 per cent of the investment - €40 million - through equity cash. The rest will be financed through foreign direct investment.
Speaking on the fringes of the Malta Business Forum organised by the Frankfurt Chamber of Commerce, Dr Muscat said he was convinced they would succeed.
"Their business model is based on the geopolitical realities of the region and they are assembling a strong team to meet the targets and figures they're proposing."
Dr Muscat said the government never said that De Paul University of Chicago was setting up a campus in Malta.
"I said we would have the American University of Malta with investment from the Sadeen Group and De Paul University drafting the curriculum," he insisted.
"I understand those who question the existence of the university. But the group convinced us, showed us its plans and these will be released for public scrutiny," Dr Muscat added.
Dr Muscat said De Paul University seemed to be very much on board and in a letter to him, the university president, Rev. Dennis Holtschneider said it was an honour to be selected as the primary institution that will work with the American University of Malta.
"We are thrilled to collaborate with the new university to develop high-quality, American-style curricula in the heart of the Mediterranean," he wrote.
Asked if the proposed site in Zonqor was set in stone, Dr Muscat said it would have to go through the planning authority's site selection process.
"It is not a fait accompli. The only decision taken is to have a American university in the south."
The business forum was addressed by Dr Muscat, Economic Services Minister Chris Cardona and German industrialists who have invested or are investing in Malta. They spoke on Malta's attractiveness as an investment destination. Among them was Matthias Goeke who explained why German robotics company IBG has now decided to set up shop in Malta
Dr Muscat is also due to have investment promotion talks in Qatar tomorrow.