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South Korean pharma company SK Biotek to invest up to €35m developing new plant

The construction phase at the site is expected to take between 12 and 18 months

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Joyce Fitzharris, president of SK Biotek Ireland​

SK Biotek, a South Korean-owned pharmaceutical contract development company, has received planning permission to develop a manufacturing facility in Swords, Co Dublin, that could represent an investment of up to €35m.
Fingal County Council recently approved SK Biotek’s plans to build the Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient manufacturing plant. The company applied to build the facility in March last year.

According to planning documents seen by the Sunday ­Independent, the “total installed cost” for the project has been valued at between €30m and €35m, representing a significant investment in the area’s growing pharmaceutical sector.
The new, modern manufacturing plant has been designated as a “multi-product” facility.

The development would see the demolishing of part of the original production building on the site. According to the planning documents it will see the company employ the latest industry technology but not change the current nature of its operations.

The construction phase at the site is expected to take between 12 and 18 months.

SK Biotek currently operates several multi-functional pharmaceutical production processing plants from the Swords site. The company acquired the Swords Campus facility from the US multinational life sciences giant Bristol Myers Squibb for an undisclosed price in 2017. SK Biotek did not respond to a request for comment.

It is not the first pharmaceutical and medical manufacturing investment proposed in north Dublin and the surrounding areas.

In November, Bristol Myers Squibb revealed it was planning to develop a biopharmaceutical manufacturing plant in ­Cruiserath, Dublin 15.

The site could create around 300 jobs, according to planning documents.​