Pharmaceutical company Bristol Myers Squibb is to invest $400m in a new sterile drug product biologics manufacturing facility in west Dublin, creating 350 new jobs.
The new plant will be based at its existing campus in Cruiserath in Dublin 15 and will support the production of existing and new medicines.
The company said it would be its first European sterile drug product facility for biologics manufacturing.
“This is significant news and a proud day at Cruiserath Biologics as this SDP facility strengthens not only our capabilities on campus, but allows us to be agile and responsive to patient needs across the globe,” said Padraig Keane, Vice President, Cruiserath Biologics.
“This investment will expand our capacity for aseptic drug products, reinforce stable production for global supply and accelerate the development and commercialization of innovative biologic therapies alongside other pipeline medicines.”
Bristol Myers Squibb has had a presence in Ireland for 60 years and was one of the first pharma companies ever to operate here.
The new facility will bring the number of people it employs at its campus here to more than 1,000.
The company expects to begin construction in March, once the design phase has been completed.
It is hoped that the plant will be up and running in 2026.
“Bristol Myer Squibb’s decision to invest $400m at their Cruiserath campus along with 350 new jobs is most welcome news and underscores the strategic importance of Ireland in their global operations,” said Michael Lohan, CEO of IDA Ireland.
“It is proof of the company’s future commitment to Ireland and a testament to Ireland’s continued attractiveness as a location for biopharma investment.”
The new plant will add to BMS’s existing biologic manufacturing operations for bulk drug substance.
The facility will bring new technologies and capabilities supporting sterile drug product manufacturing to the site, the firm said.
Ireland is also BMS’s global headquarters for External Manufacturing, while its Blanchardstown campus is also the home to its European treasury centre, commercial operations and market supply operations team.
The multination also has a distribution centre in Shannon, Co Clare.
The biologics campus received a $1 billion investment in 2016.
