Esteve strengthens industrially with the purchase of a factory in Lliçà

The Catalan family pharmaceutical company Esteve has strengthened its industrial capacity with the acquisition of the Unión Química Farmacéutica (Uquifa) factory in Lliçà de Vall (Barcelona). It is a complex of 21,000 square meters specialized in the production of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) that are exported to various countries in Europe, Asia, the United States, and Latin America.

Owned by the Indian group Vivimed, Uquifa, based in Barcelona, has a history of more than 80 years in the pharmaceutical industry and until now had three production centers, two located in Catalonia --- in Sant Celoni and Llicà de Vall --- and another in Mexico. The sale of the Lliçà plant to Esteve implies the transfer of a workforce of 89 employees.

According to Esteve, the purchase of these facilities is "totally in line with the group's internationalization strategy" and will allow it to increase the manufacturing capacity of active ingredients, as well as expand the product portfolio and position the Catalan company "as an international reference partner for the development and manufacturing of active ingredients for specialized pharmaceutical companies worldwide."

"This operation is an excellent opportunity to increase our industrial capacity and serve our customers and patients around the world, improve people's health and be faithful to our mission. We are advancing in our vision of becoming an international pharmaceutical company and with this opportunity we will be able to expand our services to the global specialty pharmaceutical market," highlighted Staffan Schüberg, CEO of Esteve.

The pharmaceutical company had a turnover of 454 million euros in 2020. Through its subsidiary Esteve Química, the group already owned three factories in Catalonia located in Barcelona, Celrà (Girona) and Banyeres del Penedès (Tarragona). In addition, it has production facilities in Mexico and China.

For its part, Uquifa explained that this divestment will allow it to "rationalize" its operations in Spain and "better adapt" to the "changing needs of our customers."