GlascoSmithKline to expand Algeria operations

The British pharmaceutical group, GlascoSmithKline (GSK), announced it would open a new production unit in Algeria, which will produce various kinds of antibiotics.

According to the Algerian newspaper, al-Khabar, the plant will enter actual production stage on May 4, 2005.

The establishment of this plant came after the firm had obtained a temporal license from the Algerian Ministry of Health in November 2004 for producing and storage of pharmaceutical materials, and received the final approval in March 2005.

The new unit will increase its production capacity, which stands at just over 3 million small boxes of various pharmaceutics.

GSK is a world leading research-based pharmaceutical company, which started Algerian operations in 2001. Headquartered in the UK and with operations based in the US, The company operates at present in 168 states, and it has produced more than 1.5 billion serums in the current year.

The investment project of the company in Algeria, including the new branch, is estimated at Euro19 million.