January 19 (SeeNews) - German pharmaceutical company STADA Arzneimittel said on Wednesday it is investing 48.3 million euro ($57 million) in a supply-chain hub in Turda, in central Romania.
The supply-chain and packaging unit will initially house nine state-of-the-art technology lines for solid-dose medicines such as tablets and capsules, with a capacity to supply 100 million packages per year, STADA said in a press release.
Upon receipt of the necessary building permits, construction works are scheduled to start on the 100,000 sq m greenfield site later this year, with operations set to commence in the autumn of 2024. The hub will employ 375.
Finished products from the site such as prescription and over-the-counter pharmaceuticals are intended mainly for supply to European markets. Other products set to be supplied from the facility are antidepressants, antihistamines and ant-inflammatory agents, as well as medicines to treat diabetes, high cholesterol levels and hypertension.
"We chose Turda because it is a town located in the heart of a region that is strategically important for the STADA Group. It is close to our testing laboratories and warehouse in Timisoara, Romania, as well as to the STADA production units in Serbia. The geographical location of the factory also provides fast transport links to key European markets," STADA Romania general manager Mihai Fugarevici said.
Headquartered in Bad Vilbel, Germany, STADA Arzneimittel manufactures generics, specialty pharma and non-prescription consumer healthcare products. Worldwide, STADA Arzneimittel AG sells its products in approximately 120 countries.
In financial year 2020, the group achieved sales of 3 billion euro and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of 713.3 million euro. As of the end of 2020, STADA employed 12,301 people worldwide.
In 2020, STADA bought the operations of Czech Republic-based healthcare company Walmark in Romania, Bulgaria and seven other EU countries from private equity investor Mid Europa Partners.
($=0.880 euro)