Merck KGaA Invests in Pharma Production in China

On Nov. 4, 2016, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany (referred to as MilliporeSigma in the US and Canada) announced the inauguration of a €170-million (approximately $188.00 million) pharmaceutical plant in Nantong, China. The company also invested €80 million (approximately $88.95) in a life-science center near the Nantong pharmaceutical plant to manufacture high-purity inorganic salts, cell-culture media products, and media. The first drugs manufactured in the Nantong plant are expected to be delivered to patients in the second half of 2017.

The Nantong pharmaceutical manufacturing site will focus on the production of Glucophage, Euthyrox, and Concor. The facility is designed to accommodate full production capacity of up to 10 billion tablets a year by 2021. The pharmaceutical manufacturing site currently employs 180 people and the workforce is expected to increase to more than 400 by 2021. The site has invested in standard-setting wastewater treatment and disposal aimed at minimizing the environmental footprint of its operation to the local communities.

Source: Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany