Sanofi to invest $75 million in Vietnam facility; views Chinese expansion

French  drug major Sanofi (Euronext: SAN) announced the official launch of a construction project for a new manufacturing facility in the Saigon High Tech Park - Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, during a ceremony in the presence of the firm’s chief executive Christopher Viehbacher.

The new state-of-the-art plant will expand Sanofi’s manufacturing capacity in Vietnam to meet the fast growing demand of the Vietnamese pharmaceutical market and will serve as an export platform to ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) countries. The investment in this new plant will amount to 75 million and will constitute Sanofi’s largest investment in Vietnam to date. With an initial capacity of 90 million units per year - and a possible extension up to 150 million units - the facility will produce high-quality pharmaceuticals and consumer health care products. The plant is scheduled to be fully operational by the end of 2015 and will join Sanofi’s existing network of 40 manufacturing sites in Emerging Markets.

Mr Viehbacher said: “Sanofi has been present in Vietnam for more than 50 years and has built the number 1 position in one of the most dynamic South East Asian countries. This new investment will contribute to further strengthen Sanofi’s leadership position in Emerging Markets.”