Image: © Gorodenkoff/Stock.adobe.com
France’s Ipsen has been active in Ireland for 30 years and plans to expand the manufacturing capacity at its Blanchardstown plant.
French biopharma company Ipsen is to invest €25m in expanding manufacturing capabilities at its Irish plant.
The company employs 165 people at its plant in Blanchardstown, where it develops drugs for treating patients with rare cancers and other conditions.
Its portfolio of drugs includes treatments for prostate and pancreatic cancer. It currently has new drugs for liver and kidney cancer going through trial and regulatory processes.
Ipsen has been operating in Ireland for more than 30 years and the €25m investment is targeted at expanding the manufacturing capacity for its drugs at this plant. There are no new jobs as part of the investment but the company previously grew its Irish workforce by 20pc in 2019.
Tim Shanahan, vice-president of manufacturing for Ipsen Manufacturing Ireland, said that the Irish base is an important cog in Ipsen’s manufacturing business.
“We have invested €60m in capital projects in Ireland in the last five years and are proud to announce a further €25m to scale up our manufacturing capacity and enable us to produce even more transformative medicine for patients suffering from rare and life-threatening conditions,” Shanahan said.
“Our dedicated team at Ipsen Ireland is constantly innovating to deliver positive, life-changing care for patients with underserved conditions. We are confident that this investment and our continued growth in the Irish market, will enable us to continue innovating and working towards better treatment and care for patients who need it most.”
Ipsen reported sales of €658.5m for the first quarter of 2021 and in March sold some of its intellectual property related to a drug for treating solid tumours to Fusion Pharmaceuticals.
The company generated €2.5bn in sales in 2020 and has a total of 5,700 employees globally, with other facilities in France, the UK, US and China.
