$150m Philex Pharmaceutical Factory Opens in Salalah

Salalah: The Philex Pharmaceuticals manufacturing factory in the Salalah Free Zone was opened today, under the patronage of Dr. Hilal Ali Al Sabti, Minister of Health.

The manufacturer is an important contributor to securing the Omani markets with the pharmaceutical needs in the first place. It also seeks to export locally manufactured products to the GCC and Arab countries, as well as the African market shortly.

The manufacturer, built according to international standard specifications, currently has local and global opportunities and operational plans. The drug products are marketed in Oman, Qatar, and other countries.

The project included three stages of development; establishing an advanced pharmaceutical manufacturer and a development & research center. In the current stage, the manufacturer plans to produce more than 100 pharmaceuticals, including various types of medicines and vaccines in the next stages with a production capacity of one billion tablets and one billion capsules annually for the first stage.

The manufacturer is the most recent project in the pharmaceutical field in the Sultanate of Oman, aiming to shift Salalah Free Zone to a regional center for pharmaceutical & biological industries with investments of about $150 million.

With opening Philex factory, the total existing investments in pharmaceutical and medical factories reach nearly $200 million in Salalah Free Zone and Raysut Industrial Zone, with 7 factories.

Dr. Ali Masoud Al Sunaidy, Chairman of the Public Authority for Special Economic Zones and Free Zones (OPAZ), said, “Opening this factory marks an added value to the pharmaceutical and medical industries in general in the Sultanate of Oman, and particularly in the free and industrial zones in Dhofar Governorate, which stands as an attractive investment environment for such industries.”

He, further, added, “Today, we are observing the opening of the RO 23-million- value first phase of the factory, an equivalent of $60 million. The project’s production capacity is approximately one billion drug pills and one billion drug capsules for 50 medicinal items in this phase. Besides, it is expected that the factory will soon complete the project’s second and third phases, bringing the investment value to RO 58 million ($150 million)”.

On the other hand, Al Sunaidy, pointed out, “Salalah Free Zone is currently a home for 2 more projects, with a value of RO 13,5 million ($35million) one for producing medical tools and another one under construction for producing medical supplies. In addition, there are 4 other factories in Raysut Industrial City producing injectable solutions, pharmaceuticals, medical gloves and masks, and other medical supplies, with investment value of RO 40 million ($104 million).

Hence, the total investments in the pharmaceutical and medical industries in both zones reach over $200 million. This brings 3 factories for pharmaceuticals and 4 for medical supplies, one of which is on final stages. Overall, as the objective is to meet the local needs of medicine and medical supplies, a number of these factories are also exported to foreign markets.

Moreover, lands have been allocated in Salalah Free Zone for the expansion of this factory, which we are celebrating today, and any pharmaceutical and medical factories that are expected to come in the future”. – ONA