IDA Ireland last night said it remained confident of securing future biotechnology investments, despite the loss of a landmark project yesterday.
US group Amgen announced it had "postponed indefinitely" its €800 million plant at Carrigtwohill in Co Cork. The plant, which was initially due to open in 2010, had been expected to employ up to 1,100 people. Seventy-nine people currently employed by the company in Ireland will be laid off.
IDA Ireland said the decision follows adverse rulings by the US regulator, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and health insurers about two anaemia drugs that account for close to half of Amgen's revenues. Sales of both drugs have fallen significantly in recent months.
The FDA warned in March that higher doses of the drugs - Aransep and Epogen - could increase the danger of heart attacks, strokes and death. However, Barry O'Leary, manager of the IDA's pharmaceuticals division, said last night: "We still expect to win a significant portion of future global biopharma investment."
Amgen, which has seen its share price tumble 18 per cent in 2007, had already announced the loss of 2,600 jobs worldwide in August and the closure of two US plants.
The decision by the world's largest biotechnology company to pull out of the Cork development was reported to have been taken only in recent days, following a global review of manufacturing operations by Amgen, the world's largest biotechnology group.
Amgen has indicated to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment that it intends to retain the site.
Yesterday's announcement came despite repeated assurances from the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Micheál Martin, that the project would proceed. Last night, Labour East Cork TD Seán Sherlock said it was clear that Fianna Fáil and the Minister had been engaging in "nothing more than an election stunt".
Mr Martin said he was "personally very disappointed" by the decision. "That said, it is a very volatile industry and the company has been very clear that it is a consequence of the company's own problems."
He said it was "very clear" that the company had intended to make the 1,100-job investment in Cork, and that it had suffered a number of setbacks over the past 18 months.
Mr Martin said there was "no question" of the project going ahead in any location. The project was announced in January 2006, with Ireland beating off Singapore and Switzerland to secure what was seen as a landmark investment in the fast-growing biopharma sector.
The news was greeted with disappointment on Leeside, where Cork County Council carried out major roadworks on the N25 to facilitate the plant.
