Pharmaceutical firm to invest $393 million in Ireland plant

Chinese pharmaceutical company WuXi Biologics will invest 325 million euros ($393 million) in a new manufacturing facility in Dundalk, Ireland, the firm announced on Monday.

The investment will create 400 highly skilled jobs during the next five years.

Leo Varadkar, the prime minister of Ireland, said: "This is the start of something special. We will see the factory of the future, right here in Dundalk. It's the first sizable greenfield project from China in the pharma sector and I am delighted to see it located here in Dundalk. It's also the latest in a number of investments in this town, which has become a hub for a range of sectors, mainly in the new knowledge-based and pharmaceutical sectors."