Manufacturing facility will have annual full-scale capacity for hundreds of millions of vaccine doses and other therapeutic doses. 

APC Ltd, the award-winning Irish pharmaceutical research and development company, is investing €25M and creating 120 jobs through the formation of a ‘Global Centre of Excellence for Vaccine and Advanced Therapeutic Research and Manufacturing’.

‘Medicine accelerator’

As a global ‘medicine accelerator’, APC’s expanded facility will enable the rapid research and manufacture of vaccines, including COVID-19 vaccines, and other advanced therapeutics for rare diseases. It will provide supply chains nationally and across Europe with these vital medicines, positioning Ireland as a significant contributor on the international stage to the manufacture of Covid vaccines and other critical advanced therapeutics.

A total of €8m of this investment involves the construction of an additional 12,000 sq ft of laboratory space and associated research infrastructure at APC’s existing 60,000-sq-ft headquarters in Cherrywood, Dublin.

The expansion, which will be fully operational by the end of June 2021, will add 50 new highly skilled jobs to the existing team of 140 people, with roles in chemistry, biology, chemical engineering, analytical sciences coming on stream immediately, along with other various professional pharmaceutical positions. The expansion will support the research acceleration of COVID-19 vaccines and other advanced therapeutics.

At the same time, APC is also announcing a €17m investment in the creation of VLE Therapeutics Ltd. to focus on the manufacture of vaccines and advanced therapeutics, including cell and gene therapies. This will be the first Irish-owned facility expressly designed to provide Ireland and Europe with a local supply chain for these critical medicines.

Stage 1 of VLE will have a new manufacturing facility in place by the end of 2021, with an annual full-scale capacity of up to 50 million vaccine doses. Up to 70 jobs are planned as part of this investment across manufacturing operations, supply chain, engineering, QA/QC, and regulatory.

Bespoke 80,000-sq-ft manufacturing facility

Stage 2 of VLE’s manufacturing capability will deliver a new bespoke 80,000-sq-ft manufacturing facility by the end of 2023. This facility will provide a world-class platform for the Drug Substance and Drug Product clinical and commercial manufacture of a wide range of Vaccines and Advanced Therapeutics with dose capacity in the hundreds of millions.

Taoiseach Micheal Martin said: “APC’s new Global Centre of Excellence positions Ireland as a key contributor to the research and manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccines and other critical Advanced Therapeutics. Today’s investment will make APC the world’s first ‘Medicine Accelerator’, a place where molecules get to market at record speed through science-led expertise combined with digital innovation. This is set to revolutionise how medicines are developed and delivered to patients.

"The fact that this is all happening in Ireland, thanks to the work of a 100% Irish owned company, is testament to the wealth of talent and vision we have here in this country in the biotech and pharmaceutical space. It is remarkable to think that, thanks to APC and VLE, Ireland will shortly have the capacity to manufacture hundreds of millions of vaccine doses a year, a move that is set to be totally transformative not just for patients, but for the entire sector, at both a domestic and international level.”

An Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said: “Ireland is already internationally recognised as a global hub for biopharmaceutical companies but this announcement will put us on the map as a significant producer of vaccines, including the lifesaving COVID-19 vaccine.”

Group CEO to APC and VLE Dr Mark Barrett said: “In development since July 2020, this €25M investment is a culmination of our ambition for an Irish company to stand tall and contribute, on both the national and global stage, to the development and manufacture of Covid vaccines and other critical advanced therapeutics.

"Ireland is a global powerhouse for pharma manufacturing and we believe our technological advancements can work hand-in-hand with this track record to accelerate the development and manufacture of these critical vaccines and advanced therapeutics for people in Ireland, Europe and around the world. We’re also delighted to have a strong longstanding partnership with Enterprise Ireland and their investment was integral to this entire project.”

Enterprise Ireland CEO Leo Clancy said: “From the start, Enterprise Ireland has supported APC’s R&D and scaling agenda to become a global leader and a unique disruptor in the global pharma industry.

"APC has an exceptional track record, delivering game changing disruptive technology to the largest global pharma and biopharma companies in the world to optimise and accelerate the development and production of medicines, including vaccines. Today’s announcement is hugely significant to deliver the next frontier of biopharma manufacturing, and further strengthens Ireland’s position in the global value chain of vaccine development and manufacturing.”