FLORENCE, S.C., April 25, 2007 -- Roche Carolina Inc. (RCI) announced today an expansion of its Florence pharmaceutical manufacturing facility.  The $60 million investment will involve the construction of a new multi-purpose production unit in an existing manufacturing building. The expansion will help enable Roche to meet production needs for current and future life-saving medications. As a result of this investment, 25 to 30 new positions are expected to be created at the facility.

Construction is scheduled to begin in mid 2007 with completion by the end of 2008. An estimated 200 construction related jobs, many to be provided through local contractors, will be required for the project.

“The decision to invest in Florence is a reflection of our past success and the willingness of Florence and South Carolina to encourage the growth of existing industry,”
said Dr. Frank Cox, President and General Manager of  Roche Carolina Inc. “We are grateful to the community for its support and recognition of the underlying importance of our business to improving human health.”

"It speaks well about the workforce, community and the local government anytime we have an existing industry expand in Florence County," said Joe W. King, Executive Director, Florence County Economic Development Partnership.  "As a major player in the worldwide pharmaceutical industry, we are excited Roche has chosen to expand their roots in our region.  Roche has been a great corporate citizen over the last fifteen years; they consistently assist us in the recruiting of new industries to the area by selling the Florence community as a great place to do business."

 Roche Carolina Inc., a pharmaceutical process development and bulk active ingredient manufacturing company, is an affiliate of the multinational group of companies headed by Roche Holding Ltd. of Basel, Switzerland. 

Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Roche is one of the world’s leading research-focused healthcare groups in the fields of pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. As a supplier of innovative products and services for the early detection, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases, the Group contributes on a broad range of fronts to improving people’s health and quality of life. Roche is a world leader in diagnostics, the leading supplier of drugs for cancer and transplantation and a market leader in virology. In 2006, sales by the Pharmaceuticals Division totaled 33.3 billion Swiss francs ($26.6 billion US), and the Diagnostics Division posted sales of 8.7 billion Swiss francs ($6.96 billion US). Roche employs roughly 75,000 people in 150 countries and has R&D agreements and strategic alliances with numerous partners, including majority ownership interests in Genentech and Chugai. Additional information about the Roche Group is available on the Internet at www.roche.com.