Sanofi's Irish unit pays out dividend as Waterford as employee numbers rise to 959

Genzyme is one of the largest private employers in the south east

Sanofi purchased Genzyme’s global business in 2011 and since then has invested over €700m in the Waterford facility. Picture: Bloomberg

The main Irish arm of biopharma giant Sanofi last year paid out dividends of €800m.

New accounts show that Genzyme Ireland Ltd paid out the dividend as pre-tax profits increased by 6.5% from €308.29m to €328.5m.