Health, Welfare and Sport Minister Sophie Hermans has welcomed plans for a new pharmaceutical factory in Katwijk. She said the project would benefit both the local and Dutch economies. Ahead of the Council of Ministers meeting, she also said it was important that “we continue to manufacture medicines in the Netherlands and Europe”.
US pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly plans to invest $3 billion in a factory on the edge of Lake Valkenburg, between Katwijk and Leiden. The facility will produce diabetes and weight-loss pills. The Katwijk municipal council approved the proposal on Thursday evening.
Around 500 people are expected to work at the factory.
Hermans declined to comment on the impact of the factory complex on the surrounding area, saying that this is a matter for the municipal council. Although a large majority of councillors voted in favour of the project, concerns about the factory remain within the municipality of Katwijk.
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