Joint Statement by the Ministry for Investment, Industry and Information Technology, and Nylon Knitting on a new Investment by Nylon Knitting.

A Memorandum of Understanding has been signed between the Government and Nylon Knitting, stating that Nylon Knitting will invest €43 million in the manufacturing plant in Malta during the years 2008-2011, in line with their new Business Plan.

This was revealed by the Minister for Investment, Industry and Information Technology, the Hon. Austin Gatt, together with Nylon Knitting Chairman, Mr Luigi Pezzoli, in a visit to the plant today. Thanks to this investment, the company undertakes to retain the present 322 employees until 2017 and intends to increase the complement to 400 employees by December 2011.

Nylon Knitting has been operating in Malta since 1963. Throughout its 45 years of operations in Malta, Nylon Knitting has had to face various challenges in order to remain competitive, as the global market for its products changed and as the cost of production in Malta increased in parallel with the standard of living on the island.

There were difficult moments. In 1997, with 189 employees, Nylon Knitting was just surviving and was not generating any profit. At that point the shareholders faced a major decision, in the face of growing competition as well as opportunities to shift its production base elsewhere. The company decided to invest in order to remain competitive.

In fact, in 1998, Nylon Knitting expressed its confidence in Malta and invested €7 million in machinery and equipment and another €55 million over the following 10 years.

The investment announced today is another turning point for Nylon Knitting. The investment of €43 million will be in three phases, that include the expansion of the knitting department, the complete substitution of the old technology including a substantial investment in machinery and equipment.

The investment by Nylon Knitting shows that the company has a prosperous future in Malta.

Nylon Knitting Ltd is owned by Italian group SITIP s.p.A Industrie Tessili. The company has nylon spinning, filament warping and warp knitting facilities in Malta. Nylon Knitting spins 650,000 kg/month of Nylon 6 and knits 750,000 kg/month of warp knitted fabrics on its 120 warp knitting machines.