A New Chapter in Currency Printing as De La Rue Opens Malta Supersite

After five years and an investment of c. €60 million, De La Rue’s new factory in Malta has been officially opened in the presence of the country’s Prime Minister, Robert Abela, and Silvio Schembri, Minister for the Economy, Enterprise and Strategic Projects. Described as a ‘supersite’, it will – says De La Rue – support the creation of world class, functionally excellent banknotes for the next 50 years and beyond.

De La Rue’s relationship with Malta dates back to 1860, when it printed the country’s first stamps, and it became the supplier of Malta’s banknotes in 1918, continuing as the sole supplier until Malta entered the euro in 2008. It opened a purpose-built printworks there in 1975 (indeed, the island was the location for the company’s first overseas production site) and built a second facility in 2008. In 2016, it announced it was creating a Centre of Excellence for Security Print on the site as part of a €27 million investment.