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Astellas is expected to bring hundreds of highly skilled jobs to the region by 2028 and expand its own capacity to develop antibody drugs and other products.
Japanese company Astellas Pharma has received planning approval for a state-of-the-art facility in Kerry.
Astellas revealed plans to create the facility earlier this year and said the investment would expand its capacity to develop aseptic drug products, reinforce stable production for global supply and accelerate the development and commercialisation of innovative antibody drugs and other new products.
Approval for the site was granted yesterday (19 December) by Kerry County Council, according to the submission on its website.
The facility will be based on the IDA greenfield site in Kerry Technology Park and is expected to bring highly specialised engineering, science and technology roles to the region. The site will include a main three-storey ‘fill-finish’ production building, along with other buildings such as a security office building, an ESB sub-station and a waste-water pre-treatment plant.
Construction of the new site is expected to begin next year and will create up to 600 jobs while it is being developed, according to The Irish Times. The company aims to have the facility operational by 2028.
Astellas is a pharmaceutical company that creates new drugs to address diseases with high unmet medical needs.
The latest investment marks the pharma company’s third site in Ireland, having established a manufacturing plant in Mulhuddart, Dublin, for active pharmaceutical ingredients in 1986.
The second site in Killorglin, Co Kerry, was set up in 1990 and manufactures a range of treatments, including the immunosuppressant Prograf.
In September, IDA Ireland CEO Michael Lohan said the latest investment is excellent news for the south-west region.
“Astellas already has a presence in both Kerry and Dublin and this significant investment of approximately €330m, adding a new state-of-the-art aseptic drug product facility, underscores the strategic importance Ireland plays in Astellas’ global operations,” he said.
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