Mihael Furjan (Pliva): We Contributed Nearly 150 Million Dollars to Croatian GDP

The past year in PLIVA’s operations was marked by the implementation of Teva’s new global strategy characterized by a shift towards stronger growth. The core determinants of business in the upcoming period will be greater strides towards new therapeutic solutions and innovative medicines, for which strong Research and Development is crucial, as well as a focus on more complex therapies.

PLIVA, today one of Teva’s largest members in Europe with over 3,000 employees in Croatia, accounting for 10 percent of total global medicine production, and with developed research and development, is excellently positioned to implement this strategy. The significance of operations in Croatia is also reflected in the data on the impact on the overall economy. In 2023, our activities in Croatia generated nearly 600 million dollars to the total global GDP, while we directly contributed nearly 150 million dollars to Croatian GDP.

PLIVA continuously increases the number of employees in Croatia, which has grown by more than 1,200 in the last decade, and just last year by more than 200, while systematically increasing salaries and employee benefits, and we expect the same trend to continue this year. In 2023, we operated successfully, achieving sales growth with slightly lower profits than those recorded in 2022 due to a significant increase in production and operating costs and all the challenges brought by inflation and geopolitical instability. We have significantly raised production volumes as well as the number of approved projects developed in our R&D center for the global market. We are recording an increase in exports to the USA and other countries, and we have launched a large number of new products on the market. The production operations in Zagreb, which use 100 percent green energy, finished 2022 with a record number of finished products exported to more than 60 global markets, and we expect to continue this trend in 2024 with a planned increase of five percent for finished tablets and capsules and even 30 percent for sterile products.

Although the global research and development center in Zagreb has previously been one of the key centers for the entire Teva, we are proud of the further strengthening of this team. At the beginning of May, a new Center of Excellence for Research and Development of Innovative Molecules was established, composed of highly qualified experts who have previously worked on the research and development of active chemical substances in Zagreb. The decision to integrate the knowledge and expertise of these parts of the business follows Teva’s global needs and serves to strengthen the Global Organization for Research and Development. The new Center of Excellence will support Teva’s business in the field of research of innovative molecules and the development of new forms of existing molecules. The establishment of this Center of Excellence, thanks to highly qualified experts, along with the continued investment in business development, will contribute to the speed, safety, and quality of production.

Speaking about the future moves of the new Government of the Republic of Croatia and local self-government, we expect that work will continue on further relieving labor, which we believe is one of the key elements for maintaining and strengthening the growth of the Croatian economy, which has been recording positive results for 13 consecutive quarters. We believe that the new Government will also recognize the importance of investing in the private sector, which is more agile and can ensure employment, as well as create new jobs through important research and development projects.