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Economics Minister Prof. Pinkwart presents the NRW.INVEST AWARD to companies from the United Kingdom, France, Norway and the USA

Düsseldorf, 3 July 2017 - Economics Minister Prof. Dr. Andreas Pinkwart and the state-owned economic development agency NRW.INVEST presented the NRW.INVEST AWARD 2017 to four international companies for outstanding investment in North Rhine-Westphalia:

The British company Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics received the award for the establishment of its production facility in Düsseldorf. The Norwegian firm Hydro Aluminium Rolled Products was honored for its new production line in Grevenbroich. Teleperformance Germany from France received the award for its second settlement in North Rhine-Westphalia. The hotel search engine operator Trivago received the award for the new campus at Dusseldorf's Medienhafen district.

"With this award, the state is sending a signal: International investors are very welcome in North Rhine-Westphalia. They create thousands of jobs and drive innovations with their know-how," said Minister Prof. Pinkwart at the 13th presentation of the NRW.INVEST AWARD at the K21 Museum in Düsseldorf, and promised: "The new government will expedite decision-making to speed up digitalization and reduce bureaucracy in order to further increase the attractiveness of the location for companies from Germany and abroad."

"Competition for international investors has been on the increase for years," explained Petra Wassner, CEO of NRW.INVEST. "International direct investment flows are shifting more and more towards newly industrializing countries. We can defend our leading position with an active settlement policy."

Once again in 2016, NRW thus successfully asserted its position as the leading location for international companies in Europe. The state registered 413 new settlements and expansion investments by foreign companies. Around 8,600 new jobs have been created as a result of the settlements – an increase of more than seven percent compared to the prior year. From the point of view of international companies, North Rhine-Westphalia has become even more attractive, in particular as a production location. In addition, the number of international investors from the software and IT sectors has tripled since 2010.

The winners of the NRW.INVEST AWARD 2017:

Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics: The British cosmetics manufacturer opened its production facility in June 2016 in Düsseldorf – the company’s biggest investment on the European mainland. On a 10,700 square-meter site, the company manufactures products for Germany, France, Benelux and Sweden. The company already employs 300 workers here in distribution and manufacturing.

Hydro Aluminium Rolled Products GmbH: The Norwegian aluminum manufacturer is investing 130 million euros in a new production line in Grevenbroich, increasing the capacity for aluminum body panels from 50,000 to 200,000 tonnes per year. In 2016 the Neuss-based business commissioned a new 45 million euro beverage can recycling plant.

Teleperformance Germany: The French contact center service provider opened the new branch in April 2016 in Mönchengladbach, where it rented around 3,000 square meters in a new office complex in the Nordpark commercial zone. Teleperformance intends to invest 3.8 million euros, thereby creating around 400 jobs by the end of 2017. The company had previously set up its German headquarters in Dortmund. 

Trivago: The startup founded in Düsseldorf is currently building a new company headquarters in Düsseldorf's Medienhafen district at a cost of 145 million euros. The campus will accommodate up to 2,000 employees on 30,000 square meters of office space. Five years ago, Trivago sold the majority of its shares to the US company Expedia and is now listed on the New York stock exchange NASDAQ.

Image material of the winners and of the award ceremony can be found from 11am on 4 July 2017 at: www.nrwinvest.com/de/mediathek/