Last year, WuXi Biologics, a biopharma corporation listed in Hong Kong, reported operating losses of €72.6 million for its primary Irish branch. As part of its initial phase in 2023, Wuxi Biologics Ireland Ltd had its first engineering batches for a client delivered from its factory in Dundalk. That action resulted in the revenues of the company growing from €16.1 million to €100.2 million.
The firm weathered pre-tax losses of €86.7 million, which included €14 million in finance expenses. This loss reflects an increase compared to the losses of €6.9 million recorded in 2022. The directors of the firm posit that their central operation involves offering manufacturing services to players in the global biologics sector.
The workforce at the Dundalk facility grew from 401 to 607 employees, driving up the cost of staffing to €49.8 million. In 2023, the biopharma group’s Irish branch received €410 million of funding, which was utilised for upgrade purposes at its Dundalk plant. As a result, the corporation’s fiscal balance improved, with shareholder capitals escalating from €799.3 million to €1.12 billion.
Throughout 2023, the company’s attention was fully directed towards completing the approval, confirmation and authentication of the MFG7 manufacturing suite, as stated by its directors. The company also prioritised finalising engineering batches for their inaugural customer product in their MFG6 suite.
The directors elucidated that the operating deficit of 2023 was anticipated due to the facility’s growth. They added that in 2024, they aim to finalise the commissioning, validation and qualification of MFG6.2, which is earmarked for a pre-existing customer. This move, they believe, will drive a substantial rise in their production capabilities.
Recently, the Louth Co Council approved the firm’s planning application to install a 3MW wind turbine to supplement the electricity supply at its Dundalk campus. As mentioned in the documentation related to the planning application, the proposed wind turbine will cater to about 20% of the plant’s power demand while concurrently helping to decrease the annual CO2 emissions.