STMicroelectronics gets two new floors in €250m factory expansion
Semiconductors almost as important as oil in today's world, says economy minister
The government has handed over a new facility in Kirkop to STMicroelectronics, marking the next phase of a €250 million investment that is expected to strengthen Malta’s role in the global semiconductor industry.
State entity INDIS formally handed over the facility, which is still being completed, to the global firm at a ceremony held on Wednesday.
The project, described as the largest foreign direct investment in Malta, will see the facility equipped with advanced production spaces, cleanroom infrastructure, modern mechanical and electrical systems and technology-driven internal logistics. Construction was completed over 18 months.
STMicroelectronics has been present in Malta since 1981 and employs around 1,600 people at its 20,000-square-metre Kirkop site, which produces some 1.3 million chips every day. The company serves sectors including automotive, consumer electronics and telecommunications.
Prime Minister Robert Abela, who was accompanied by Economy Minister Silvio Schembri, said the facility would produce advanced components and microchips for the international market, including for satellites, aircraft and other electronic equipment.
He said the project would increase the value of Malta’s production and further strengthen the country’s reputation as one able to attract and sustain high-level technological manufacturing.
Abela said the investment was not easy to secure and that Malta had been in competition with several other countries to secure the expansion. The process, he said, started around six years ago and required the government to explain what advantages Malta could offer over competing jurisdictions.
He said the EU Chips Act was crucial in the current geopolitical climate, as Europe sought greater resilience and autonomy in semiconductor and microchip production.
The prime minister said technological progress meant workers would have more tools to increase production through automation, but also more training, new skills, stronger careers and better wages.
He said the project reflected the government’s economic model, focused not only on the number of jobs but on their quality.
Abela also referred to work to build a stronger microchip ecosystem in Malta, including through Malta Enterprise, Malta’s participation in a European Important Project of Common European Interest on semiconductors, collaboration with IMEC and the development of a national chips competence centre.
Schembri said the project was a clear sign of the confidence global companies had in Malta’s capabilities.
He said the investment was a vote of confidence in Malta and its people, raising the level of advanced manufacturing in a sector essential for medical devices, electric vehicles and advanced energy systems.
The minister said the milestone aligned with Vision Malta 2050, as the country sought to attract high-value investment built on digital innovation, artificial intelligence and smart manufacturing.
Schembri also said Malta had understood that chips were “almost as important as oil”, with semiconductors found in everything from cars to mobile phones and almost every electronic device.
STMicroelectronics Malta general manager Laurent Filipozzi said the handover marked another important step in the company’s long collaboration with Malta.
With the support of the government, Malta Enterprise, INDIS and the Maltese authorities, he said, ST was strengthening its presence in Malta and building the facilities needed for the future of advanced manufacturing.
The Wednesday event was the second tech-related infrastructural announcement made in recent weeks, following a pledge by US Medtech firm Vantive to develop a €150 million facility in Ħal Far, and one of several similar announcements by the government in the midst of an election campaign.