Economic activity is always cause for celebration and optimism, the Prime Minister said in his opening lines at the inauguration of Lufthansa Technik Malta (LTM).
He was addressing a gathering of distinguished guests in LTM's newly refurbished hangar at the airport, housing a Lufthansa Airbus A319 and an Air Malta Boeing which is currently being maintained.
This general optimism is underpinned by a sense of an achieved goal set some time ago, when the Malta Enterprise Board, which was established in a co-ordinating role within the Ministry of Economics, had recognised Malta's great potential as a location for technical support services in the aviation industry, Dr Fenech Adami said.
The Board had identified this as a sector that Malta should target and which Government should actively support, he added.
As a direct result of this interest the Ministry for Economic Services has identified 'target' sectors under the Business Promotions Act, and companies engaged in such activities can now benefit from the full package provided by the Act.
The legal notice published under this act specifically identifies aviation maintenance as a target sector, therefore, eligible for investment tax credits and other measures to facilitate the required investment, plus additional assistance such as training grants, Dr Fenech Adami explained.
LTM is a joint company (Lufthansa Technik AG and Air Malta) in the business of aircraft maintenance. LTM Malta will perform C-checks on the Boeing 737 series - including the Next-Generation - and Airbus A320 family.
Introducing the event, LTM chief executive Louis Giordimaina spoke about how the first maintenance agreement with Lufthansa in 2000 led to the idea of setting up the joint company between Lufthansa and Air Malta.
Calling the venture another milestone, Lufthansa Technik AG chairman, August W. Henningsen, said at the inauguration that his company was impressed by the turntime and quality demonstrated by the Maltese team.
He welcomed what he called "Lufthansa's youngest company" to the family. He talked of the positive experience gained by the Maltese team just back from training in Germany. And the importance of Malta's position in the vicinity of key markets not only in Europe but the Arab peninsula.
Air Malta chairman Louis Grech said the joint project formed part of Air Malta's plan for innovation and branching out. LTM will not only create jobs but also bring in foreign exchange.
Although Air Malta has highly experienced personnel, there is a short supply of highly skilled staff and the training and development centre at Air Malta is planning an apprenticeship scheme with Lufthansa to ensure future requirements as LTM grows will be met, Mr Grech said.
The company is already fully booked for 2003 and although it is only operating a one-line facility for the moment, their two-line capacity should be operational by 2005.
The PM also said that he was convinced that the LTM venture will be just one of a number of new initiatives in the expansion and development of the aviation sector in Malta.
Both Malta International Airport and the Malta Development Corporation are looking at ways to further tap this potential and expand on existing activity, he added.
All this needs to be seen within an even wider vision of an aviation sector which offers considerable scope for development, such as air cargo transhipment and other initiatives linked to the hubbing concept.
One of the most potentially interesting achievements would be the successful exploitation of linkages between the maritime and airline sectors, such as the development of the fly-cruise concept with Malta at the centre of this node of activity within the Mediterranean, Dr Fenech Adami said.
Before unveiling a plaque commemorating the event to a shower of confetti in the Lufthansa colours of yellow and blue, the Prime Minister thanked the management and staff of Lufthansa Technik Malta, ably led by Mr Giordimaina, for their dedication and hard work in setting up the company in such a short time and commencing operations as scheduled.