The Chairman and CEO of AbbVie Richard A. Gonzalez, accompanied by other senior leaders, officially opened the company's newly expanded facility in Sligo, Ireland today.

The ceremony was attended by An Taoiseach, Mr. Enda Kenny T.D.

The site is a strategic asset for AbbVie due to its involvement in the commercialization and manufacturing of AbbVie pipeline products in liver disease, oncology and women’s health. The expansion provides increased manufacturing capacity to deliver on AbbVie’s existing portfolio of medicines and to support potential new therapies within AbbVie's pipeline.

Since the initial announcement of the expansion in 2012, AbbVie has invested €85 million in the Sligo facility, resulting in the creation of up to 175 highly skilled jobs in Sligo. The company employs a highly skilled workforce specializing in the disciplines of science and engineering, with 80 percent having a third level education qualification ranging from degree to Ph.D. level. The new jobs include roles in engineering, quality, pharmaceutical science and other science-based areas. Additionally, the expansion at this facility created more than 200 construction jobs in the local area at its peak. The investment has been supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland.

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"This investment represents our ongoing commitment to Sligo and Ireland as an important part of AbbVie’s biopharmaceutical manufacturing strategy," said Azita Saleki-Gerhardt, Ph.D., Senior Vice President, Operations, AbbVie. "Our presence here in Sligo dates back to 1974, and our success in Ireland is a credit to our dedicated staff and management. This expansion builds capacity for existing products and for potential therapies in our pipeline, such as our investigational, all-oral, interferon-free regimen for the treatment of adult patients with chronic genotype 1 (GT1) hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection."

(CD)