Pharmaceutical firm BioMarin is to acquire Pfizer's manufacturing facility in Co Cork for $48.5 million, it was confirmed today.

BioMarin, which develops products for the treatment of chronic genetic disorders, said it will create an additional 100 jobs at the 133,000 sq ft facility over the next five years.

The investment is supported by the Government through IDA Ireland.

BioMarin said it plans use the facility for manufacturing products related to its ongoing Phase 3 clinical study for N-acetylgalactosamine 6-sulfatase (Galns). It is anticipated the facility will be licensed for Galns production by 2015.

It is expected that the acquisition will close in September provided pre-sale conditions are met.

"The new plant in Shanbally greatly expands our manufacturing capacity to accommodate our growing commercial portfolio and advancing clinical programmes,” said BioMarin chief executive Jean Jacques Bienaimé.

“The new facility in Shanbally also diversifies our manufacturing risk and provides us with an attractive business environment. The facility is state-of-the-art, utilising disposable technology and flexibly designed to run either fed batch or perfusion processes.

“This gives us tremendous latitude for the types of products that can be produced at the plant and allows us to focus efforts on the technical transfer of our next commercial product into the facility,” he added.

Pfizer announced its intention to close the Shanbally facility along with plants in Loughberg and Dún Laoghaire in May 2010.

The firm also announced it was to reduce operations at six other plants in Ireland as part of a restructuring of the business which would lead to 6,000 job cuts worldwide.