Regeneron to invest additional $ 350 mn in Irish biologics plant.

Biopharmaceutical company Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc has announced that it will invest an additional $ 350 million in its Limerick Industrial Operations and Product Supply (IOPS) bioprocessing campus in Ireland, bringing the total investment to $ 650 million by the end of 2017.

The company acquired the former Dell Computer facility in Limerick and achieved planning approval in April 2014 for its first IOPS site outside of the US. When the investment was initially announced in December 2013, a $300 million investment was planned for delivery by the end of 2016. With this expansion of scope, the Limerick IOPS campus will house the largest-scale bulk biologics production facility in Ireland.

Leonard Schleifer, president and chief executive officer of Regeneron, said, “With a growing portfolio of marketed medicines and an innovative pipeline rooted in cutting-edge science and technology, Regeneron is one of the fastest-growing global biopharmaceutical companies. The Limerick facility will play an essential role in ensuring Regeneron delivers on our mission to consistently and repeatedly bring new medicines to patients with serious diseases.”

Regeneron's 400,000 sq ft biologics production facility in Limerick is now operational with the first production line on track to enter validation before year end 2015. When complete, Regeneron’s Raheen Park facility will be the largest-scale bulk biologics active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) production facility in Ireland. IOPS is responsible for the production, packaging, labelling and delivery of Regeneron products. IOPS manufactures a broad range of biopharmaceuticals for patients worldwide, including therapeutic proteins approved for marketing by regional or national regulatory agencies and those involved in clinical studies.

In addition to IOPS' significant operations in Limerick, Regeneron also has a growing multi-functional team in Dublin supporting its business in Europe.

BS