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Blanchardstown
Rare disease company to create 200 jobs - at a cost of €450m
It’s one of the largest investments in healthcare in the history of the Irish state.
12.22pm, 11 May 2015
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ALEXION PHARMACEUTICALS, A biopharmaceutical company focused on serving patients with severe and rare disorders, is expanding its Irish operations.
The organisation is set to create 200 jobs upon completion of its €450 million facility in College Park in Blanchardstown, West Dublin.
In a statement released today, Alexion said the expansion project will take place over the next four years and will double its workforce to almost 500.
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On top of 200 full-time positions, 800 short-term construction jobs will also be created.
Since it first entered the Irish market in 2011, Alexion has spent €130 million in two facilities – the College Park site and another facility in Athlone.
Martin Shanahan, CEO of IDA Ireland said the project is “one of the largest investments in healthcare in the history of the Irish state”.
Julie O’Neill, Executive Vice President of Alexion’s Global Operations, said the announcement “further underscores our commitment to Ireland and is enabled by our ability to recruit highly competent and professional personnel”.
“Alexion has a unique mission to develop life-transforming therapies for patients with severe and life-threatening ultra-rare disorders,” O’Neill added.
Jobs Minister Richard Bruton TD said the biopharmaceutical sector was “specifically targeted as part of the Action Plan for Jobs, due to the large potential for employment growth which it offers Ireland”.
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While this is good news. I wonder how dependent the economy is now on the pharmaceutical industry. I’d say there is danger of it being the bust and dragging Ireland down again if the IDA isn’t planning to be a bit more diverse in the company’s being attracted into Ireland.
as long as the world’s population continues to require healthcare there will be a demand for pharmaceutical companies and their products , biopharma is a rapidly growing industry with Ireland being very proactive in attracting these companies from the start. Jobs like this will replace the ones that will be lost from existing pharmaceutical positions in the coming years as we go over the patent cliff.
And where better to do bioresearch than an Island, you know, containment and all that when it goes horribly wrong (sorry, too many films I’ll put my foil hat back on now)
If a company is willing to invest such a large amount into a facility and work force I’m sure they will be making a return on it. In the case of rare diseases even if a population can have a low percentage affected by the disease, globally it can still mount to a higher percentage of people who need treatment.
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