US biotechnology group Genzyme this week announced €430 million worth of investment in its European facilities, including €125 million in its plant in Waterford.
The Waterford investment will create 120 jobs at the plant, which currently produces Renagel, used for patients on dialysis.
"We are very pleased with our progress in Ireland so far and hope to continue building our business here," said Henri Termeer, Genzyme's chairman and chief executive. "We are very impressed with the response from the local community, the IDA and the labour force here."
Mr Termeer said there was great potential to expand Genzyme's operations in Europe and that the group had found Ireland an excellent place to do business. About 250 people are currently employed at the Waterford plant.
Speaking at the opening of the new site, the Tánaiste and Minister for Health, Mary Harney, welcomed the investment, saying it demonstrated Ireland's ability to attract high-quality projects from biotechnology companies.
"The biotechnology industry offers top quality employment opportunities, especially for graduates in the science areas," she said. "I am confident that the success of the company and the quality of the commitment of its employees will lead to further success for Waterford and for Ireland in this key sector."
Genzyme, which employs 7,600 people around the world, this week also announced a €137 million investment in its bio-manufacturing facility in Geel, in Belgium, the expansion of its manufacturing centre in Haverhill, in the UK, and the creation of an antibody discovery and development facility in Cambridge.
Mr Termeer said he was very pleased to be able to announce the expansion this week and hoped to make similar announcements over the next few years.
"Europe has a big role to play in the future of the industry. It may take a while, but we will definitely see further growth here."
The expansion of the Waterford site makes it a major production and distribution centre forGenzyme's products across Europe. Until now, the plant has been used to tablet and bottle Renagel, used to treat patients with chronic kidney disease. Last year it produced in excess of three million tablets for more than 350,000 patients worldwide.
Following the new investment, the plant will also produce Thymoglobulin, a kidney transplant rejection product, and Cerezyme, an enzyme replacement treatment for Gaucher disease. The company also plans to expand the facilities so they can be used to support clinical trial work on capsule and liquid forms of the drugs it hopes to bring to the market.
Genzyme, founded in Boston in 1981, has annual revenues of $2.2 billion (€1.8 billion).
