Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton TD has announced that Eli Lilly and Company, a global leader in biopharmaceuticals, is to invest €330 million in a brand-new facility at its Kinsale campus in Cork. The investment will expand the Kinsale site’s existing biopharmaceutical mission with the establishment of an additional world-class commercialisation and manufacturing facility.
The new facility, when fully operational, will require up to 200 highly skilled employees. In addition, a further 300 construction jobs will be created on the site during building works. IDA Ireland worked closely with Lilly to attract this investment to Ireland.
The planned 240,000-square-foot biopharmaceutical commercialisation and manufacturing facility announced today will further enhance the company’s ability to bring treatments for illnesses such as cancer and diabetes to patients worldwide. This is the second large investment Lilly has made at its Kinsale site in recent years. In 2006, the company announced a €300 million investment in its first biopharmaceutical manufacturing and new-product commercialisation facility at its Kinsale campus, which came on-stream in 2010.
Speaking at the announcement, Minister Bruton said: “The Action Plan for Jobs, which the government published recently, outlined a range of measures which we will take in 2012 to target the high-end manufacturing and health/life sciences sectors for further growth and also to deepen and develop the impact of multinational companies in Ireland. Today’s announcement—that this world-leading company is making a substantial investment in expanding its facility in Kinsale with the creation of up to 200 permanent jobs—shows what is possible in these areas.
“The Government is determined to ensure that more announcements like this become real in the coming years”, Bruton added. “By implementing the Action Plan for Jobs, we can support more businesses, rebuild the economy and create the jobs we so badly need”.
Ed Canary, General Manager of the Kinsale site, said: “This investment is an endorsement of the Lilly Kinsale site’s success in developing a biopharmaceutical business in recent years and demonstrates our ability to rise to that challenge. This is in no small part due to the site’s excellent performance record, the talent of the workforce, and the support from IDA Ireland.
“In the past five years, we have hired and trained some highly talented people and now have a technical talent base and capability in biopharmaceutical commercialisation and manufacturing that makes us a very attractive company for highly skilled people”, Mr. Canary added.
The strategic importance of the investment for the corporation was emphasised by Paul Ahern Ph.D., Senior Vice President – Global API and Dry Product Manufacturing. “This investment is part of Lilly’s planned growth strategy and proof of our confidence in Lilly’s pipeline of new products, many of which are derived from biotechnology”.
Maria Crowe, President of Global Manufacturing Operations for Lilly, who also attended the announcement, complimented the Irish government for its long-established pro-business environment and support of the pharmaceutical sector in Ireland through its science and technology policies. “We in Lilly have seen this reflected in our deep and productive relationships with organisations such as the IDA and Irish academic institutions. The output from this commitment to education is also reflected in the excellent candidates who apply to join our company, many of whom have gone on to careers at Lilly operations across the globe”.
Commenting on the announcement, IDA Ireland CEO Barry O’Leary said: “I would like to congratulate Lilly’s Irish management and staff on this achievement. It is a great success story for the Kinsale site and an excellent addition to the south west region. This investment demonstrates Lilly’s enduring commitment to Ireland and further evidence that Ireland continues to position itself as a leading location of choice for the commercialisation and manufacturing of biopharmaceuticals”.
