Pfizer invests €145m in Irish plant
The company employs 1,100 people at its Grange Castle site in Clondalkin, where it produces two of its main drugs, Enbrel and the infant vaccine, Prevenar 13.
The investment will add two new processing suites to the five-year-old facility and expand production levels and product testing capabilities.
Construction on the extra facilities has begun, but they will not be up and running until sometime next year.
The news is positive for the construction sector as building work on the project is set to create up to 400 jobs.
However, a spokesperson for Pfizer said there are currently no plans to introduce any new permanent employees at Grange Castle on the back of the expansion.
The move does underpin the company’s commitment to Ireland after its disposal of three plants here in the last year, the spokesperson added.
Grange Castle — which Pfizer inherited from its takeover of Wyeth two years ago — ranks as one of the largest biotech manufacturing sites in the world.
“This investment will allow us to help meet the needs of patients by introducing new technologies and capabilities at Grange Castle, where we produce highly complex vaccines and biologic products for patients around the world,” said Paul Duffy, vice president of external supply at Pfizer.
Meanwhile, there was further good news on the jobs front yesterday, with the announcement by Indian IT software company HCL Technologies that it is to set up a software delivery centre in Dublin, creating 80 jobs for IT graduates over the next three years.
The new facility will service a number of HCL’s clients across the areas of financial services, insurance, healthcare and pharmaceuticals.
In addition, the international leasing company, SixT has entered the Irish fleet management market and will be creating 25 jobs over the next two years at its Irish base in Sandyford.
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