Tarrytown-based Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. has announced that it has expanded its Limerick Industrial Operations and Product Supply bioprocessing campus in Ireland by adding 300 jobs and investing $100 million in the facility.
Regeneron”™s 400,000-square-foot facility at Raheen Business Park in Limerick is the largest scale bulk biologics production facility in Ireland, according to the company. The additional $100 million investment will support the construction of manufacturing suites to increase production capacity and enable the company to meet patient demand.
Regeneron”™s facility in Limerick became operational in 2015 and is responsible for the production, packaging, labeling and delivery of medicines worldwide.
The latest announcement brings the company”™s total expected employment at the site to 800 people and investment in the Limerick facility to $750 million.
“Gut feel is a large portion of any site selection. When we picked Limerick years ago, we simply felt good about the community, universities and people,” said Dan Van Plew, executive vice president and general manager of industrial operations and product supply at Regeneron. “A few years and a lot of experience later, I can now confidently say I know Limerick is a place where you can build and thrive as a biotech.”
The project is supported by the government through business development service IDA Ireland.
“Regeneron”™s decision to expand so significantly is testament to the talent pool and attractive business environment available to companies in Ireland,” Ireland’s Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said. “This planned further expansion by Regeneron in Limerick is a significant contribution to the rejuvenation of the region.”
Recruitment is ongoing for high-end specialist positions in commercial manufacturing, process sciences, quality assurance, control,validation and various support functions.
“Regeneron, a leader in the global biopharma industry, set up in Limerick in 2014 and has created a world-class science hub to produce medicine for millions of people,” said Frances Fitzgerald, deputy head and minister for business, enterprise and innovation. “I am delighted to see the great progress made to date giving rise to further substantial investment and additional jobs to be created in Limerick.”
In addition to the production facility in Limerick, the company has a growing Dublin office that employs 30 people and serves as its European Business Administration headquarters. Regeneron”™s total headcount in Ireland is expected to approach 850 by the end of 2018.
