Stunning waterfront site

WIDESPREAD interest is expected in the sale of a stunning Cork harbour waterfront site now fully vacated by Pfizer.

The 15-acre site, with 300,000 sq ft of buildings, is expected to appeal to agri-business companies, manufacturers, other pharma businesses, education uses, and storage firms among others.

Pfizers Ireland has been slimming and rationalising its Irish operations over the past two years, and back in 2010 signalled its intention to vacate this 200-jobs Loughbeg, Ringaskiddy plant by 2012.

One of several Cork Pfizer sites, it had been used in the manufacture of the cholestrol-reducing drug Lipitor, which has come off patent (see below).

Over €160m was invested in this world-class facility, with about €80m gone into infrastructure, bricks and mortar, with the balance gone into specific plant which is now removed.

Selling agent for the trophy site is Peter O’Flynn of DTZ Sherry FitzGerald, who says it is getting a strong international marketing campaign, with IDA support also, given its adaptability for other uses and its clean, walk-in condition. It may also have an appeal to the likes of the Kerry Group, Glanbia or Dairygold.

It includes a four-storey process building totalling about 170,000 sq ft, two adjoining warehouse buildings of 24,000 and 27,000 sq ft, 35,000 sq ft of quality offices, boardroom, canteen etc and has considerable scope for further buildings on the overall 15 acres.

It’s a kilometre from Ringaskiddy, and about 500 metres from the National Maritime College which is already undergoing expansion plans, and education and research uses are also contenders for this prime asset, being offered for sale to investors and end users.

The building mix includes extensive chemistry and microbiology laboratories.

Price guide quoted by DTZ is a loose €5 to €10m. The price is a fraction of the value of the product produced at Ringaskiddy, as Lipitor sales worldwide reportedly earned Pfizers over €10bn per year before its patent expired.

In Ireland since 1969, and still a very major employer here with 4,000 employed in seven facilities in Cork, Dublin, Kildare and Limerick, Pfizers has invested over €1bn in Ireland, and began Lipitor manufacture in Cork in 1996. It currently employs around 650 in Cork, in Little Island (180) and Ringaskiddy (470).

According to a Pfizer spokesperson, “it was announced in 2010 that the company would exit the Loughbeg tabletting site in 2012 and this is complete. The Loughbeg site played a key role in the tabletting production of Lipitor for global supply and this decision is in relation to reduced volume following Lipitor patent expiry during 2011 and 2012. We continue to explore sale options for the site.”

According to selling agents DTZ, the plant/industrial facility which is also of interest to food/agri businesses has expansion opportunities, good access and circulation networks, and an excellent global distribution network with a shipping/ferry terminal a kilometre away; Cork airport is 12kms.

Nearby occupiers include the Irish Navy at Haulbowline, Centocor, Pfizers main Ringaskiddy plant, Moog, Biomarin, Johnson and Johnson, Novartis, GlaxoSmithKline, and next door are Portuguese company Hovione, who took over manufacturing at Pfizers’ former adjacent Loughbeg API facility in 2008. Another small Little Island Pfizer facility was disposed of in the last year or so.

* Details: DTZ Sherry FitzGerald 021-4275454