Novasep to invest €30m in large-scale API production plant
The Pompey-based processing and manufacturing tech firm announced the €30m ($23m) investment plan at drug industry CPhI in Madrid this week, explaining the new facility at its site in Mourenx in the south-west of the country should be operational in the next 18 months.
Novasep said the project – which has received financial and logistic support from local authorities, Total and French innovation group OSEO – was motivated by a ‘sharp increase’ in projected demand for large volume API orders according to CEO Patrick Glaser.
“Demand for Novasep’s advanced purification-based manufacturing capabilities in the life sciences industry continues to increase as drugs in development and reaching the market become more complex and specific.”
Key technologies will include Novasep’s Varicol continuous chromatography systems combined with a solvent collection system that Novasep claims will allow it to produce large batches of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) with 99.9 per cent recovery efficiency.
Expansion
Novasep hinted it would invest in API production capacity in March, when it told in-Pharmatechnologist.com that €40m ($53m) to spend on expansion projects after completing a €310m refinancing round that involved France’s strategic investment fund – the Fonds Stratégique d'Investissement (FSI) – and investment group Azulis.
At the time a spokeswoman told us that that while precise investment plans are not being disclosed “API contract manufacturing, biopharmaceutical manufacturing, as well as purification technology development may benefit.”
Shortly afterwards Novasep added a new 2,000m2 production plant at its facility in Shanghai China, again citing demand for APIs – as well production used by the food industry – as important drivers for the investment.
More recently the firm said it would invest €3m to add extra high potency API production capacity specifically focused on the production of antibody-drug conjugates at its facility in Le Mans, France.
