Takeda launches construction of €40 million Dublin facility

The production facility will extend Takeda’s strong investment in Ireland, where it currently employs more than 400 people across three sites. The extension of facility will see a further 40 people employed. The plant will become a primary site for the manufacture of the therapy, and will house the drug substance and product, all primary and secondary packaging and quality control processes. Shipments of secondary packaged product are due to commence in the latter half of 2018. The drug is currently manufactured in Germany and package in Wales.

Ninlaro is a proteasome inhibitor which blocks enzymes expressed by multiple myeloma (MM) cells.  The once-weekly pill was approved by the FDA in November 2015 for the treatment of MM in patients who have had at least one prior therapy, before later achieving approval in the EU and Japan.

Thomas Wozniewski, Head of Takeda’s Global Manufacturing & Supply noted that the move is key to the company’s strategy: "It will give us the crucial in-house manufacturing capacity to meet the increasing demand for our innovative product Ninlaro."

The news of Takeda’s confirmed expansion will go further to ease worries that President Trump’s stance to pressure pharmaceutical companies to shift production to the US is not taking hold. Only last week, MSD confirmed that it would continue to invest in Ireland by expanding its own site to the tune of $280 million.