Germany’s WET Automotive Systems, a global leader in car seat heating systems, said on Wednesday it was closing its plant in Malta and dismissing all 117 employees because of lack of competitiveness, Reuters reported.

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The company had been operating in Malta for 17 years where its plant was the Munich-based firm’s first outside Germany, the report said.

Production activities will be transferred to other foreign, low-cost manufacturing plants, WET said, according to Reuters.

“The decision was reached after immense cost pressure from the international major car manufacturers,” the company reportedly said.

The cost of the Maltese production activities were globally the highest in the group, even though the Malta plant was the most efficient, flexible and productive, it added, according to Reuters.

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