Pfizer Inaugurates $50M Manufacturing Site in Saudi Arabia

A new, $50 million pharmaceutical manufacturing plant was opened by Pfizer Company at King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) in Saudi Arabia, local media reported Monday.

The facility, operated by subsidiary Pfizer Saudi Ltd., will produce 16 products in five therapeutic areas – cardiovascular, pain, anti-infective, urology, and neurology – and contains both production and packaging technologies, reported English language news organization The Saudi Gazette on Monday.

“Pfizer is one of the international companies investing in the Kingdom and this manufacturing facility is a concrete example of its contribution to the expansion of a localized pharmaceutical industry,” Prince Saud Bin Khalid Al Faisal, acting governor of SAGIA, said in the Gazette. “This is the result of our ongoing and effective public/private sector partnership approach which is driving towards achieving the development goals of the Kingdom, crystallized by Saudi Arabia Vision 2030.”

124 people will be employed at the site located north of Jeddah half of which are projected to be Saudi citizens, the Gazette said, adding that the facility could be potentially expanded in the future.

“This facility is set to provide Saudi patients with locally manufactured medicines that can help transform their lives. In addition, the facility allows us to develop local manufacturing expertise and capabilities to help meet our shared commitment with the government to provide a continued reliable supply of innovative and essential medicines for patients in Saudi Arabia,” said Hussein El Hakim, country manager of Pfizer Saudi Ltd. in the Gazette.

The Saudi government granted Pfizer a trading investment license in June 2016, giving Pfizer 100% ownership of the subsidiary, a report by English language daily newspaper Arab News said.

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