Medavia, the aviation company, will be investing €10.5 million to build a new hangar and office block as part of its plan to expand its operations here.

The new 5,000 square metre hangar will be flanked by a 2,000 square metre office block, which will form part of the new aviation park on the outskirts of Safi.

Medavia, which forms part of the Libyan Arab Foreign Investment Company (Lafico), is mainly involved in the transportation of personnel and cargo from Tripoli International Airport to desert oilfields. It also provides specialised aircraft maintenance and administration.

The infrastructural works for the aviation park, spanning over two hectares, will cost the government €7 million and will include the construction of aprons and taxi ways. They will be linked to the airport’s main runway by March next year.

The government will also be helping Medavia out in its €10.5 million investment through assistance from Malta Enterprise. However, the amount and type of assistance to be granted was not divulged.

Last year, €80.4 million worth of aid was administered by Malta Enterprise but the amount of money that went to individual companies was never disclosed.

Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said Medavia’s investment was “another strong sign of trust in the future of this country”  and the aviation industry that had grown over the years.

“The aviation park is a vision through which we plan to establish Malta as a major aviation centre in the world,” he said.

Medavia managing director Abdurazagh Zmirli said: “Forming part of an aviation park has been our vision for many years. Now we feel that it is being realised thanks to the commitment of Malta Enterprise and the Malta Industrial Parks.”  He explained that the new office block and hangar would be built on the site of an old similar facility that was being dismantled. Materials from the old hangar will be recycled and used in the new environmentally-friendly premises that are planned to be completed by July[...]

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