Us$150mn drug manufacturing factory inaugurated in Salalah
H E Dr Hilal bin Ali al Sabti, Minister of Health, inaugurated Philex Pharmaceuticals in Salalah Free Zone last week.
Philex Pharmaceuticals is a drug manufacturer and important supplier meeting the pharmaceutical needs of Omani markets and will export to the GCC, Arab and African markets shortly.
The facility, built to international standards, is the most recent project in the pharmaceutical sector in Oman. With an investment of about $150mn, it aims to make Salalah Free Zone a regional centre for pharmaceutical and biological industries.
With the opening of Philex Pharmaceuticals’ manufacturing facility, the total existing investments in the pharmaceutical sector is now close Us$200mn, invested in seven factories in Salalah Free Zone and Raysut Industrial Zone. Of the seven, three factories produce pharmaceutical items and four medical supplies.
On the occasion, H E Dr Ali Masoud al Sunaidy, Chairman of Public Authority for Special Economic Zones and Free Zones (OPAZ), said, “Opening this factory marks an added value to the pharmaceutical and medical supplies industry in general in Oman, particularly in the free and industrial zones in Dhofar governorate, which is an attractive investment sector.”
He further added, “Today, we are observing the opening of the Ro23mn-first phase of the factory, which is equivalent to about Us$60mn. The project’s production capacity is approximately 1bn pills and 1bn capsules of 50 medicinal items in this phase.
The factory is expected to be completed soon with its second and third phases, taking the investment value to Ro58mn (Us$150mn).”
H E Sunaidy informed that two more projects valued at Ro13.5mn (Us$35mn) are planned in Salalah Free Zone.
“One is for production of medical tools and another, which is under construction, for medical supplies. Additionally, four other factories in Raysut Industrial City with an investment value of Ro40mn (Us$104mn) are being planned for production of injectable solutions, pharmaceuticals, medical gloves and masks, and other medical supplies.”
The Ministry of Health has stressed the importance of strengthening pharmaceutical security in Oman. ‘The Directorate General of Pharmaceutical Affairs & Drug Control seeks to establish an industry for medicines and medical supplies by coordinating with the concerned authorities, as well as encouraging and attracting investments in the field of drug manufacturing,’ MOH stated.
At the end of 2022, Oman had seven drug manufacturers and seven manufacturers of medical supplies. Nine other factories are under construction, of which seven are for medicines and two for medical supplies.