Massachusetts-based Genzyme to expand in Ireland, create 170 jobs
DUBLIN, Ireland --Cambridge, Mass.-based biotechnology company
The Irish government said it was offering confidential assistance to subsidize the $200 million expansion of Genzyme's operations in the southeast city of Waterford.
Genzyme, set up its first manufacturing facility in Waterford in 2001 and plans to hire another 170 people, boosting its Irish work force to more than 600.
The company said it plans to build a new production line for soft-gel capsules, expand its existing plant for filling medicine vials, and adding lab and office space.
The expansion in Ireland represents "a ringing endorsement of the positive experiences we have had there," said Mark Bamforth, senior vice president of corporate operations and pharmaceuticals.
Genzyme specializes in making drugs to treat rare genetic disorders, kidney disease and cancer and to help organ-transplant recipients. It employs more than 10,000 worldwide.
Ireland, a country of 4.2 million, is a major European hub for drug development and production. Most of the world's biggest drug companies have manufacturing and research and development operations here that employ about 25,000 people.
Trade, Employment and Enterprise Minister Micheal Martin noted that half of all foreign corporate investments to Ireland so far this year have come from pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies and constitute "a crucial component of Ireland's economic landscape."
The Genzyme move was the second major foreign investment this year for Waterford, a city known internationally because of its hand-cut crystal factory. Last month the Israeli generic drugmaker
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On the Net:
Genzyme in Ireland, http://www.genzyme.ie/corp/iegenz/ie--p--ci--iegenz.asp
Background on drug-making sector in Ireland, http://tinyurl.com/2epsfj 