November 21, 2024

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(Merck)

Global pharmaceutical company Merck Life Science said Thursday it will invest some 430 billion won ($324 million) to build a new bioprocessing production facility in South Korea.

The European bio firm plans to build a 43,000 square-meter center in Daejeon, about 140 kilometers south of Seoul, equipped with production, distribution and storage facilities to support the development and manufacturing of drug products of biotech companies across the Asia-Pacific region, according to company officials.

The plan, Merck's biggest-ever investment in the region, came after the company signed a memorandum of understanding with Seoul's industry ministry and the Daejeon city government for the project last year.

"South Korea is where various institutions with outstanding level of research, manufacturing and service capacities in the field of biopharmaceutical development are located," Merck CEO Matthias Heinzel said.

Merck currently has a life science operation center and a lab collaboration center in Incheon, just west of Seoul. (Yonhap)