Merck Opens Production Facility Exclusively for Meglumine in Spain

• Regulatory compliant, FDA-audited facility based in Mollet des Vallès, Spain
• The only facility in Europe solely dedicated to meglumine production

Darmstadt, Germany, January 17, 2017 — Merck, a leading science and technology company, today announced the opening of a facility in Mollet des Vallès, Spain dedicated to the manufacture of meglumine, an FDA-approved excipient for pharmaceuticals and a component of medical imaging contrast media.

The facility, validated by the FDA, is the only location in Europe that manufactures meglumine, an amino sugar derived from glucose. The facility in Spain is solely dedicated to the production of meglumine, thereby ensuring continuity of supply to customers as well as meeting increasing demand for the excipient. As an excipient, meglumine interacts directly with active pharmaceutical ingredients to increase solubility. Therefore, the manufacture of meglumine must meet the same stringent regulatory and quality requirements as APIs.

“Our new facility was optimized around the manufacturing process to achieve greater efficiencies and meets the most stringent quality standards for manufacturing meglumine,” said Andrew Bulpin, Head of Process Solutions Strategic Marketing & Innovation, Life Science. “The result is a high level of confidence in quality and security of supply for our customers.”

About Merck

Merck, a leading science and technology company, operates across healthcare, life science, and electronics. Around 58,000 employees work to make a positive difference to millions of people’s lives every day by creating more joyful and sustainable ways to live. From advancing gene-editing technologies and discovering unique ways to treat the most challenging diseases to enabling the intelligence of devices – the company is everywhere. In 2020, Merck generated sales of € 17.5 billion in 66 countries.

Scientific exploration and responsible entrepreneurship have been key to Merck’s technological and scientific advances. This is how Merck has thrived since its founding in 1668. The founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed company. Merck holds the global rights to the Merck name and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the business sectors of Merck operate as EMD Serono in healthcare, MilliporeSigma in life science, and EMD Electronics.