Profits slip 17% at Botox Westport plant as revenues top $2.9bn

Pretax profits at Co Mayo-based Botox producer Allergan Pharmaceuticals Ireland last year declined by 17 per cent to $187 million (€169 million).

Allergan has made Westport the “Botox capital of the world” and the new accounts show that 83 per cent or $2.4 billion of the company’s $2.9 billion in revenues last year came from the anti-wrinkle treatment, Botox.

The remaining 17 per cent of sales came from eye-care pharmaceuticals produced at the company’s Westport plant.

Overall revenues at Allergan Pharmaceuticals Ireland declined by 4.4 per cent from €3 billion to €2.92 billion.

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Westport is Allergan’s only Botox manufacturing facility across its global network and is serving ever increasing global demand. The US is the Westport company’s largest market, accounting for 64 per cent of $1.9 billion of revenues.

Higher costs last year contributed to operating profits reducing by 24 per cent from $220.5 million to $167.5 million.

Allergan first set up on a greenfield site outside Westport 42 years ago, 1,158 are employed at the plant and last year staff costs totalled $82.95 million.

Allergen Pharmaceuticals Ireland is expected to grow sales and pre-tax profits in line with growth in its key markets, according to the directors' report.

“Allergan’s overall plan is to achieve double digit growth each year over the next three years,” they say.

They also say that the company has capital projects in progress to expand its production capacities to strategically position its manufacturing facility for the introduction of new products. Abbvie is due to acquire Allergan and the directors’ report states that the deal is expected to close in early 2020.