WestPoint Home, a US-based textiles manufacturer, has inaugurated its new spinning facility in Bahrain as part of the company’s ongoing growth in the kingdom.

The new $9 million investment marks WestPoint Home’s third expansion in Bahrain over the past five years and over $160 million of investments over the past 10 years, where products produced generate over 50 per cent of its total global revenues annually.

Works on the third spinning expansion were initiated in 2015 with the aim of mitigating the negative financial impacts of the 2016 expiration of the tariff preference level (TPL) that allowed it and other textile manufacturers in Bahrain to import certain support materials, such as yarn, and export finished goods into the US duty free.

Normand Savaria, CEO of WestPoint Home, said: “We are delighted to inaugurate our new facility, which will increase our spinning capacity in Bahrain by 38 percent. As the only textile company to continue to invest in expansion and to maintain operations in the kingdom, this investment underscores our commitment to Bahrain’s economy.

“It will also effectively allow us to build on what is already over $100 million of exports annually from Bahrain to the US as well as expanding our ability to further sales in other regional and international markets.”

He added: “By spinning more yarn in Bahrain, we will decrease lead times, increase flexibility and, along with other initiatives, help to offset costs resulting from the TPL expiration of 2016. This is a considerable achievement for us and one which will positively impact our employees and serve to further enhance our ongoing contributions to the kingdom’s economy.”

“Our dedication to further building out our manufacturing base in Bahrain is in no small part a result of the Kingdom’s business friendly practices and the tremendous support that we have received from various government ministries as we have continued to invest in expansion and the hiring and training of local talent. This includes a major step in 2015, which saw us turn over the running of our Bahrain operations to a regional management team who have implemented “Lean and Six Sigma” programmes and elevated efficiency and quality levels to all-time highs,” Savaria, added.

The company said also under discussion at the inauguration ceremony were additional future investments in Bahrain including further expansions in production capacity aimed at capitalising on growth opportunities in the GCC and European markets in addition to the US.