Pirelli Tire North America will invest $15 million to add a new production line at its high-performance tire manufacturing facility in Rome. 

The expansion will boost the plant’s output by 25 percent and is expected to be operational by the first quarter of next year.

The announcement came on the same day that Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue met with company officials at Pirelli’s international headquarters in Milan, Italy.

Mr. Perdue will return Oct. 3 from a weeklong economic development trip to Europe, where he visited Italy, Spain and Portugal to call on companies and gather knowledge on infrastructure and financing for transportation projects.

“Georgia has all the advantages that companies are looking for when considering investment in the American market, and our expectation is that we will continue to see new jobs and investment stream into our state,” Mr. Perdue said in a statement.

Pirelli moved its U.S. headquarters from New Haven, Conn., to Rome in 2002.  The facility employs about 250 people.  The release from the Georgia Department of Economic Development did not mention how many jobs would be created by the expansion.

For more on the governor’s trip, click here.