01/02/2022

ESTEVE INCREASES ITS PRODUCTION CAPACITY IN SPAIN

Esteve Química purchases one of the UQUIFA Group's two pharmaceutical fine chemicals plants in Barcelona

The new plant covers more than 21,000 m2, has a team of 89 people and a production capacity of 160 m3 of reaction volume

The pharmaceutical group ESTEVE has signed, through Esteve Química, an agreement to purchase the fine chemicals industrial facility run to date by UQUIFA in LLiçà de Vall (Barcelona).

The purchase of this facility, which is fully in line with ESTEVE's expansion strategy, will increase its capacity to manufacture active ingredients and expand its product portfolio and production capacity and thereby securing the group's continued growth.
The LLiçà de Vall site occupies a surface area of 21,176 m2, a workforce of 89 people and a production capacity of 160 m3 of reaction volume (added to the total of 875 m3) It currently produces advanced intermediates and active pharmaceutical ingredients, which are exported to Europe, the United States, Latin America and Asia.

This facility meets Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) and have the corresponding AEMPS (Spanish Health Agency) certification, as well as ISO14001:2005 certification covering environmental aspects. They are also audited by several international regulatory authorities such as the Korean FDA and the Japanese PMDA.

Staffan Schüberg, CEO of ESTEVE, commented: ''This operation is an excellent opportunity to increase our industrial capacity and serve our customers and patients worldwide, to improve people's health and be true to our purpose. We are advancing towards our vision of becoming an international proprietary specialty pharma and with this opportunity we will be able to expand our services to the global specialty pharma market''.

Celebrating this landmark event, Pere Mañé, Chief Industrial Operations Officer, said: ''This acquisition fits our strategy perfectly and pushes two of our main levers, internationalization and growth. This new center allows us to substantially increase our technological and production capacity and to continue positioning Esteve Química as an international reference partner for the development and manufacture of active pharmaceuticals ingredients for specialty pharma companies around the world''.

Saurabh Gurnurkar, Managing Director of UQUIFA Sciences, said: ''The UQUIFA team is pleased that the LLiçà de Vall site will get a committed owner with the capacity to develop it to its full potential. This divestment will help UQUIFA streamline our Spanish operations in line with our strategic goals and better align with our customers' evolving needs''.