AstraZeneca to invest in Macclesfield production facility for Zoladex

AstraZeneca has demonstrated its commitment to the UK pharmaceuticals sector with the confirmation of a new manufacturing facility project in Macclesfield.

To be located at its existing global production site, the new facility will cost 120 million pounds and be used for the manufacturing of Zoladex, an injectable treatment for patients with prostate cancer.

This will secure 300 existing Zoladex jobs at the site and create more than 200 additional temporary positions during the construction and commissioning phase, between now and early 2017.

Zoladex is the company's fifth-largest-selling brand worldwide and has been produced in Macclesfield for more than 25 years, with products being distributed to more than 100 markets globally.

David Smith, executive vice-president of operations at AstraZeneca, said: "We believe it is the right choice to build the new facility in Macclesfield, which has been home to Zoladex manufacturing – and the expertise that goes along with it – for many years."

This comes after the company announced plans earlier this year to create a global research and development centre and corporate headquarters in Cambridge by 2016.