PHARMACEUTICAL services group Almac could be set to create up to 500 jobs in Northern Ireland as part of a multimillion-pound expansion.
The group, which is controlled by Dr Allen McClay and the McClay Foundation, has acquired a 5.4-acre site close to its headquarters in Craigavon, Co Armagh.
The group plans to develop new office accommodation, a new distribution unit and a new research facility in Craigavon.
Almac is also developing a $112 million (€76.4 million) US headquarters in Lower Salford, Pennsylvania.
The US base, where more than 760 are expected to be employed, will open next year.
Almac, which provides integrated drug development services to global pharmaceutical and biotech industries, employs almost 2,200 in the UK and US.
Dr McClay, who also established Galen, the North’s first billion-pound company, before setting up Almac, said the group was going from strength to strength.
“This is an exciting time for Almac. Since our foundation in 2001 we have grown at record levels, and we expect this trend to continue over the coming years,” he said.
“With our rapid rate of growth, it was important to put proper plans in place and provide the necessary room for Almac to expand.”
The latest investment injection in the North is the second by the group in less than 18 months.
It recently invested £10 million (€10.87 million) at its Craigavon site in a new laboratory complex and specialist cold-storage facility for clinical trial materials.
Earlier this month, Dr McClay established the McClay Foundation in the North to pioneer research into the prevention, control and cure of disease. He also made the new charitable foundation a key shareholder in Almac.
