US medical equipment company Edwards Lifesciences is to build a new €80 million permanent manufacturing facility in Castletroy, Co Limerick.

The new 170,000 sq ft facility will be based in the National Technological Park and create 600 new local jobs. Roles will range from leadership opportunities, planning, quality control, assembly, engineering and finance.

The plant will manufacture delivery components for its transcatheter heart valve therapies.

The development is expected to be completed by 2021.

Castletroy-based Limerick Senator, Kieran O'Donnell, welcomed the announcement.

He said: "I am delighted with this morning's fantastic announcement by Global leading US medical heart technology company, Edwards Lifesciences that they have selected the National Technological Park in Castletroy to locate their new purpose built, state of the art manufacturing facility which will employ a very impressive 600 people by 2021.

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"As part of the local Community, I wish to extend a warm welcome to Edward Lifesciences management to Castletroy and wish them every success with this very ambitious and exciting investment here. This is a great news day for Limerick City and Castletroy.

"An investment of this magnitude, in terms of both capital and job creation is a serious statement of confidence by Edward Lifesciences in what Brand Limerick has to offer as a strategic business location.

"Indeed I was not surprised that one of the reasons Edward Lifesciences chose to build their permanent manufacturing plant in Castletroy was the wealth of experience and talented workforce
 available here in the medical technology area.

"In Castletroy, we already have a significant cluster of leading medical technology companies. Nearby UL along with LIT and MIC provides top quality graduates."

He added: "Furthermore, the building of this new 170,000 square feet purpose-built state of the art manufacturing facility by Edwards Lifesciences will provide a large and welcome construction jobs boost during the building phase up to 2021.

"I wish to complement the IDA for their work on this project for Limerick.

"Brand Limerick City can stand tall as a premier location for business. Today's terrific announcement by Edward Lifesciences for Castletroy is a further public endorsement of our strong brand here," Senator O’Donnell concluded.

(CM/MH)