Bayer Healthcare to invest 100 million euros to expand capacity in China

The HealthCare division of Germany’s Bayer (BAYN: DE) will invest around 100 million euros ($137.5 million) to significantly increase the production capacity of its plant in Beijing, China, in preparation for further demand of its products in the country.

A respective agreement was signed in Germany on the occasion of the visit of the President of the People's Republic of China, Xi Jinping, by Bayer chief executive Marijn Dekkers. The planned capacity expansion is designed to ensure a reliable supply of high-quality products to meet the domestic demand for Bayer HealthCare’s products including the company’s cardiovascular and anti-diabetes products. The expansion will include logistics areas for fully automated material handling, analytical laboratories, and high-speed packaging lines.

“The expansion of our Beijing site demonstrates our continuous strong commitment to the People's Republic of China,” said Olivier Brandicourt, CEO of Bayer HealthCare, noting that “this investment will make Beijing the largest pharmaceuticals packaging site in Bayer HealthCare´s global production network.”

Bayer is the fourth-largest multinational pharmaceutical company in China, with more than 7,000 employees and production sites in Beijing, Guangzhou, Chengdu and Qidong. The company has already established a center for research and development in Beijing with investments of around EUR 100 million.

For the Bayer group, Greater China is the largest single market in Asia, accounting for sales of around 3.7 billion euros in 2013. Currently more than 13,000 people work for the Bayer group in China, which is also among the major focusses of the company's global investmen