Wyeth Pharmaceuticals opens $2 billion Ireland plant

Wyeth Company officially opened a $2 billion Irish production facility Thursday, September 8 — a move that will make the U.S. company the biggest pharmaceutical employer in Ireland, the Associated Press reports. The Madison, N.J.-based company expects to employ about 1,000 people, including 100 researchers developing new products at its 1.2 million-square-foot campus south of Dublin within the next four years. The facility will produce Enbrel, an injected arthritis treatment; Prevnar, a pneumococcal vaccine for children; and Tygacil, the first in a new antibiotic class aimed at serious, drug-resistant infections. Wyeth already operates three smaller plants and employs about 2,000 people in Ireland. Other companies with major Irish manufacturing bases include Merck & Co., Schering-Plough Corp. and Pfizer Inc.