AstraZeneca puts €307m in Irish Alexion plant

Alexion’s newly created modular API facility will complement an existing packaging site in Dublin. It is designed to produce linkers and toxic warheads of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) as well as oligonucleotides. Additional 100 jobs will be created at the rare disease specialist’s EU site. AstraZeneca completed the complement inhibitor specialist’s acquisition in July 2021. 

AstraZeneca expects the manufacturing facility to  reduce time-to-market and costs by almost €480m annually. Alexion’s approved antibodies Soliris and Ultomiris  that recently failed as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis treatment in a late-stage trial will be produced in other parts of the global production network.

Pascal Soriot, chief executive of AstraZeneca, said: “This is a tremendously proud moment for us all at AstraZeneca and I am delighted that we are bringing this very significant investment to Dublin which, with the support of the IDA, will create highly skilled jobs, nurture the country’s dynamic life sciences sector and allow for the development of high value-added medicines.”.