Economy Secretary Ken Skates has been in Crumlin to open the new £14m global headquarters of life sciences company, BBI Group.

Following a £1.8m package of Welsh Government support, the company has chosen the Caerphilly town as the location for its new global headquarters. It has also centralised its manufacturing and development activities from sites in Blaenavon, Cardiff and Dundee onto one new state of the art facility site in Crumlin.

The move to Crumlin will see over three hundred and sixty jobs being safeguarded and created in Wales by 2020. The Welsh Government reports this is in line with the ambitions of its high level plan, Our Valleys, Our Future, BBI’s move will deliver high quality career opportunities in the South Wales Valleys and provide a significant boost to the local economy.

Ken Skates said “As a highly successful company with a turnover of more than £60m and a strategically important player in the global life science sector, BBI Group is already a made-in-Wales success story. I am delighted that Welsh Government support has enabled the company to establish its global headquarters here and centralise its manufacturing and development activities in Crumlin, bringing new and high quality job opportunities to the South Wales Valleys. This is absolutely in line with the ambitions of our high level plan Our Valleys Our Future, and with the aspirations of my Economic Action Plan, which aims to ensure that the fruits of economic prosperity fall much more evenly across Wales. The Economic Action Plan is also clear about the economic growth opportunities of attracting global headquarters to Wales and our ambition to build on our success in this area. I am delighted to see BBI Group’s new state of the art facility in Crumlin first hand and wish the company every success in its new home.”

BBI Group Chairman Alan Peterson said “The opening of our new Global Headquarters is a significant step towards realising our strategic long-term growth plans. It gives us the opportunity to compete more effectively in our key markets in Europe, USA and China. The Crumlin site enables BBI to drive our customers’ future growth by expanding our capacity to provide key reagents and services for the healthcare diagnostics industry. We’re delighted that our Global Headquarters is now open and we are able to contribute to the local economy and offer quality job opportunities to the local community.”