Shire plc (LSE: SHP, NASDAQ: SHPG), the global leader in serving patients with rare diseases, announces the opening of its new office in Ireland at the Miesian Plaza on Dublin’s Baggot Street. An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny TD and Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Mary Mitchell O’Connor TD, will join Shire leaders to formally open and dedicate the company’s new offices at an event held today.

Shire’s HQ office will move from its current location in Citywest, including the local commercial and technical operations (supply chain and IT) employees based there, who will move into Baggot Street in the coming months.

Shire has leased 76,000 sq. ft. of the Miesian Plaza. The company has located one of its global corporate services teams in the building who provide support services across Shire’s global operations in the areas of procurement and finance. They are in the process of hiring 150 new employees to join this team.

By the end of June 2017, approximately 300 Shire employees will be based at the Miesian Plaza. The leased space also provides additional accommodation as Shire’s requirements increase over time.

An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny TD said: “I met the Shire CEO Dr Flemming Ørnskov at the World Economic Forum in Davos last January. I am glad they have chosen Ireland as the location for a further 150 jobs. This thriving company and their pioneering work in the field of bio-medicine is exactly the type of business we seek to attract. Our unemployment rate has gone from 15.2% to 6.4% and the Government will continue to work for a robust economy for all our people.”

Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Mary Mitchell O’Connor TD, said, “As Minister for Jobs, I welcome Shire’s ongoing commitment to Ireland. The pharma industry makes a huge contribution to the Irish economy in terms of jobs and manufacturing exports, and is one of our fastest growing sectors. We are very keen to attract speciality pharma companies like Shire who will broaden the reach of the industry here and generate new opportunities.”

Alan Walshe, General Manager for Ireland said: “It’s an exciting time for us at Shire in Ireland. The decision to open our corporate HQ at the Miesian Plaza and last year’s announcement of our investment in a state-of-the-art biologics facility at Piercetown in County Meath demonstrates that Ireland remains an important part of Shire’s global footprint and future strategy.”

Welcoming the announcement Martin Shanahan, CEO, IDA Ireland said: “Ireland is a global centre of excellence in life sciences due to the country’s strong regulatory track record and talent availability. Shire’s continued growth here across a number of business activities and its previously announced manufacturing investment is a clear endorsement of Ireland’s ongoing attractiveness to overseas companies.”