Charles River Laboratories international, Inc., have announced the completion of a €10 million expansion of its testing capabilities at its Ballina site.

The company is a highly respected global provider of drug discovery and non-clinical development solutions.

The new Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) certified space provides an additional 1,500 square meters of lab space, creating up to 70 new skilled roles over the next two years.

The project received significant support through IDA Ireland, and demonstrates the commitment by Charles River and the Irish Government to meet the growing need for batch release testing of new Cell & Gene Therapies and Mrna platform therapies, such as the COVID-19 vaccines.

Site Director at Charles River Ballina, Liam McHale, said that the ‘expanded facility will provide us with the increased capacity needed to continue the essential services we provide to our clients and represents an industry transition from in vivo to analytical testing.’