GEORGE TOWN, MALAYSIA: Penang starts the New Year with a US medical device company, St Jude Medical Inc, setting up its RM108mil ($45mil) Asia-Pacific regional plant here.
The 27.9 square metre facility on the island is the first phase of the company's expansion plan, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng announced yesterday.
The US$30mil facility will house an administrative office and a manufacturing plant.
"Construction is expected to commence this year and should be fully operational by 2011," he said, describing the initial investment as "a small step for the company but a big leap for Penang".
"They met me in June and by October, we knew they were committed to Penang. This investment has lots of potential to attract other similar companies to come here because St Jude is a big name.
"More importantly, we will benefit from the transfer of technology and gain an entry into the field of bio-technology," Lim said.
"The new facility is expected to provide 300 employment opportunities in its first year of operation and over the years, the facility may expand to create more than 1,000 jobs," he said.
Asked about retrenchments in the state, Lim said he had yet to hear of any confirmed cases.
"We hope that Penang will be spared should companies carry out a restructuring exercise. The state will approach the global economic crisis by attracting both old and new investments and conducting job retraining exercises," he said.
In a press release, St Jude Medical, Inc group president Michael Rousseau said Penang was selected due to the state's "pro-business environment, skilled workforce, and its strategic location".
In April last year, StarBiz had reported about the company's intention to invest in Penang.
The group had earlier attempted to set up a similar manufacturing plant in China which failed to materialise.
Headquartered in St Paul, Minnesota, St Jude Medical employs more than 13,000 people worldwide and has five major focus areas that include cardiac rhythm management, atrial fibrillation, cardiac surgery, cardiology and neuromodulation.
