Kencar

Kencar Group is one of the larger building services companies in Malta, and it is a name you will meet if you buy an apartment, fit out a shop or manage a commercial building on the islands. From a base in the Luqa Industrial Estate, close to the airport, it installs air conditioning and ventilation, wires and plumbs buildings and keeps them maintained afterwards. Its work runs from a single split unit in a flat to large systems for hotels, banks and supermarkets.

For UK readers the useful point is the breadth. Rather than hiring separate firms for cooling, electrics and plumbing, you can speak to one contractor that covers all three, and it is also the official agent for two of the biggest air conditioning brands, Midea and Mitsubishi Electric. If you are comparing suppliers, our directory pages for air conditioning companies in Malta, electricians in Malta and plumbers in Malta show other options alongside Kencar.

History and scale of the group

Kenneth Caruana founded Kencar Company Limited in 2000 and remains its founder and managing director. The business grew from a small venture into an organisation with more than 180 staff, and it has established itself as a major player in Malta's construction industry. A group general manager, a sales manager, a business development manager and a commercial shop manager sit beside the founder in the department leadership.

Three companies make up the Kencar Group. Kencar itself handles ventilation, heating, cooling, electrical and plumbing work for commercial and residential buildings. HVAC Supplies is a retail business selling parts, tools and components for air conditioning and ventilation installers, trading from a store in Qormi. WeDuct manufactures ducting in phenolic and galvanised steel from its own duct factory, built to the plans of each project. Having its own supply and ducting arms helps the group manage materials and timing on larger jobs.

Reliability, high quality and efficiency are the three values behind its work, and the group focuses on tailor-made solutions for each client's needs and budget. Staff training and safety are given priority because of the nature of the work.

Air conditioning for homes and businesses

Air conditioning is the heart of the offer. Kencar installs wall-mounted, cassette, ducted, and ceiling and floor-mounted units, and larger VRF systems, in both the Midea and Mitsubishi Electric ranges. VRF stands for variable refrigerant flow, a design in which one outdoor unit serves many indoor units so each room can be controlled separately. The group also commissions ventilation of every common type, including exhaust, supply, balanced and heat-recovery systems.

For households, prices start at €575 including installation, a free on-site visit and a seven-year warranty on wall-mounted air conditioners, which is subject to periodic maintenance. The first step is usually a visit from a field expert who checks the premises and measurements, then talks through the options that suit your budget. Installation follows, planned to limit disruption, and the work ends with testing and inspection so the system is tuned before handover.

Maintenance agreements are available for air conditioning units of any brand, with a service guarantee from qualified staff, and there are separate pages for installation, maintenance and repairs, and warranty and after-sales support. Malta's hot, humid summers put real strain on equipment, which our Malta weather guide explains month by month.

Electrical, plumbing and general maintenance

Kencar presents itself as a one-stop shop for electrical and plumbing systems tailored to each property. The work covers electrical installation, extra low voltage systems, plumbing, drainage and rainwater services, and the group also offers general maintenance to keep buildings in good order for tenants, customers and staff. In its project list, Kencar is shown handling turnkey requirements for several developments, meaning it manages mechanical, electrical, plumbing and finishing trades together.

Examples on the website include a private residence in Balzan that was finished, inspected and certified in about six weeks, a house in Gżira where the group delivered air conditioning, electrics, plumbing, gypsum work, tiling and furnishing, and a block of ten apartments in Swieqi completed in August 2016. For investors fitting out a property, our relocation guide for Malta explains the wider process of settling in, while the group's apartment projects in Sliema, Gżira and Mellieħa, including Southridge, show its work in places visitors may know from our Mellieħa guide.

Projects across Malta and Gozo

Kencar's project list is long and varied. Commercial work includes the Hyatt Regency in St Julian's, where it handled electrical, plumbing and all HVAC works with a Mitsubishi Electric VRF system, and the Bank of Valletta head office, with Midea VRF equipment. It has also served Centre Parc shopping complex in Qormi, a Decathlon store, offices in Sliema, Msida and Hamrun, and food outlets at Malta International Airport. Kencar was also responsible for the turnkey fit-out of the Lidl stores in Mosta and Gozo, and handles maintenance for other Lidl sites.

In the capital, projects include a boutique living development, Marks and Spencer on Strait Street and government ministries, so a stroll through our Valletta guide takes you past buildings of the sort Kencar works in. On Gozo it installed systems for a medical school in Victoria, and our Gozo guide covers the island if you are visiting. Banks, accountants and advisers feature among its clients too, a reminder of how much of Malta's financial services sector depends on well-run building systems.

Care homes, hotels and an industrial interconnector project round out the list, and Kencar also lists residential complexes in Luqa, Sliema, St Julian's and Fort Cambridge. Whatever the scale, the group aims to treat a small home job with the same attention as a large contract.

How a project runs

Kencar sets out a four-stage working process that applies to most jobs. It begins with an on-site visit, when a field expert looks over the facilities and surroundings to understand what the client needs. Consultation follows: with exact measurements and project details in hand, the team walks through the available options and helps pick the one that fits the budget.

Installation is then planned and carried out on schedule, with the team working alongside site management to keep disruption low. The last stage is finalisation, where rigorous tests and inspections confirm the work meets the standard and any fine-tuning is done. Kencar aims for prompt, responsive communication throughout, and deadlines are treated as a priority because delays cost money on any site.

This process matters most on bigger commercial jobs, but the same sequence of visit, advice, installation and checks applies to a household buying a single wall-mounted unit, which is why the offer of a free on-site visit is a sensible first step.

Sectors the group serves

The project pages are sorted by sector, which gives a good idea of where Kencar is most active. Commercial work spans hospitality, retail, administration buildings, healthcare, catering and industrial premises, and a separate residential section covers apartments, villas and private houses. Hotels and restaurants need dependable cooling and ventilation to keep guests comfortable, shops need systems that cope with heavy footfall, and offices need controllable temperatures in every room.

Healthcare and care settings bring another set of requirements, as they depend on reliable systems that run all year. Kencar has installed large VRF systems in care residences and in a medical school on Gozo, and it works on industrial sites such as a waste services facility in Maghtab and a pharmaceutical warehouse with offices. Residential developers also call on the group for complete apartment blocks, including projects in Sliema, St Julian's, Luqa and Mellieħa.

If you are a UK owner of a Maltese property, or an investor buying off plan, ask the developer which contractor is handling the air conditioning and whether it is covered by a manufacturer warranty and a maintenance agreement. Having a local agent for the brand, as Kencar is for Midea and Mitsubishi Electric, makes after-sales support easier to arrange.

Visiting and getting in touch

The Luqa Industrial Estate address makes Kencar easy to combine with an airport trip, and the group invites customers to book a showroom visit, an on-site visit, an installation or a technician call-out. Its retail arm in Qormi serves installers and tradespeople looking for parts and tools. Sales and after-sales teams keep slightly different hours, so it is worth noting which department you need when you plan a visit.

If you are new to the island, our about Malta page gives a good overview of the places and services you will use. To start a conversation with Kencar, use the VisitMalta.co.uk enquiry form on this page and we will pass your message to the business. It helps to mention the type of property, the number of rooms and whether you need cooling, ventilation, electrics or plumbing.