Roche invests $389M in Germany, Switzerland

Swiss drug major Roche has approved extensive 430.0 million Swiss francs ($389.4 million) investment plans for its Penzberg and Mannheim sites in Germany and Kaiseraugst in Switzerland. Around 280.0 million francs will be invested in expanding biotechnology drug R&D activities at Penzberg. This decision will ensure that the group's own value-added chain is exploited to its full potential in the development and production of biopharmaceuticals mainly for oncology applications, says Roche.

A total of some 150.0 million francs will be invested at Mannheim and Kaiseraugst in expanding modern syringe filling capacities for drugs such as Mircera, Roche's continuous erythropoietin receptor activator for the treatment of anemia, its hepatitis C product Pegasys (peginterferon alfa-2a) or Actemra (tocilizumab), a developmental rheumatoid arthritis drug which the firm recently filed with the US Food and Drug Administration (Marketletter November 26, 2007), and was discovered at its Japanese subsidiary Chugai.

Commenting on the decision, Roche chief executive Franz Humer, said: "after conducting a thorough evaluation of our production sites in many regions of the world and taking on board local business conditions at each, we have decided to make investments at these three sites in Germany and Switzerland. With our biopharmaceuticals heavily in demand, this step will both safeguard and expand production. Investments like this are very much long-term in nature and they create hundreds of jobs in and around the company. It is therefore essential that a stable, industry-friendly environment be maintained in the long term."