The British company that produces catalysts, Johnson Matthey, opened its first factory in the zone Skopje 1, Bunardzik, in 2010, which had been announced in 2007.
In the Memorandum signed with the Government, the start of the production was planned for 2009.
Following the decision of the Board of Johnson Matthey, it officially reported that the investment will be worth 100 million pounds or approximately 150 million euros; it will last for three years, employ about 300 workers in the first year, and have 600 employees by the end of the investment.
In 2013, the company opened a new production plant in the Technological Industrial Development Zone Skopje 1. In 2015, the company received money from the Macedonia’s budget as a type of state aid, as stated in the annual report of the Commission for Protection of Competition. However, the exact amount of the state assistance remains unknown.
According to the Directorate for Technological Industrial Development Zones, 145 million euros were invested in the Johnson Matthey factories in Macedonia. Out of the 650 jobs promised, by the end of 2015, according to data from the Central Register, the company filled 613 of them. In 2016, the number of employees increased to 681.
The owner of the factories in Macedonia is Johnson Matthey Investments Limited, a company based in London, UK. The founding capital of the company, according to data from the Register of foreign direct investment, amounted to 190 million euros. The total assets of the company by 2015 amounted to 577 million euros, of which over 99 million were non-current assets.
Johnson Matthey is the largest company in the country, both among domestic and foreign companies, with a turnover of 1.2 billion euros last year. The company's revenue increased by 28.3% in a period of a year, while profits for 2015 amounted to 91.4 million euros, 63% more than in 2014. At the same time, Johnson Matthey is also the largest exporter in Macedonia, as it sells a quarter of Macedonia’s exports at foreign markets.