GEORGE TOWN, July 29 — German life science company Eppendorf SE will invest about RM180 million (€40 million) to establish its first manufacturing facility in South-east Asia at Bandar Cassia Technology Park in Penang.

The investment was formalised today through the signing of a lease agreement between Eppendorf and the Penang Development Corporation (PDC), marking the company’s first manufacturing expansion in the region after operating its South-east Asian regional hub in Kuala Lumpur since 1995.

The planned greenfield facility will manufacture selected products from Eppendorf’s Centrifuges and Instruments portfolio, including centrifuges, mixers and cyclers used by laboratories worldwide for research, diagnostics, pharmaceutical production and quality assurance.

Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the investment reflected the continued confidence of global industry leaders in the state’s industrial ecosystem while strengthening its capabilities in the scientific and measuring equipment sector.

He said Eppendorf was a globally recognised life science company with a history spanning more than 80 years.

“With an investment of around RM180 million, this facility will strengthen Eppendorf’s global manufacturing network and serve as an important production base in South-east Asia,” he said during the lease-signing ceremony at his office in Komtar today.

Chow said Penang recorded RM2.3 billion in approved manufacturing investments in the scientific and measuring equipment industry between 2021 and the first quarter of 2026.

He said the investments, which accounted for nearly 20 per cent of Malaysia’s total, spanned 40 projects and created close to 4,500 jobs.

“In 2025, Penang remained Malaysia’s leading exporting state, contributing RM611 billion, or 38 per cent of the nation’s total trade,” he said.

Between 2021 and 2025, he said Penang exported RM187 billion worth of professional, scientific and controlling instruments and apparatus, accounting for an average of 72 per cent of Malaysia’s exports in the category.

“Investments such as Eppendorf’s do more than expand manufacturing capacity — they deepen our industrial capabilities, create opportunities for Malaysian companies to move up the value chain and foster closer collaboration between industry, universities and research institutions,” he said.

He added that the state’s growing capabilities would complement long-term initiatives such as Penang Medi-City by strengthening laboratory technologies, scientific instrumentation and research alongside healthcare services.

Chow invited Eppendorf to collaborate with local companies through the Penang Automated Test Equipment (ATE) Campus in areas including technology development, localisation, supplier development and supply chain strengthening.

“The aim is clear: to turn strategic investments into stronger local capabilities and long-term industrial competitiveness,” he said.

Eppendorf chief executive officer Dr Christine Munz said the project marked an important milestone in the company’s international expansion strategy.

“With today’s signing of the lease agreement, we are strengthening our ties with Malaysia, which has been part of our history in the Asia-Pacific region for more than three decades,” she said.

“Our planned new production site in Penang is a further clear and confident commitment to the country, its people and its industrial capabilities,” she added.

Munz said the facility would strengthen Eppendorf’s global manufacturing network by establishing a production platform in South-east Asia while supporting the company’s long-term competitiveness and resilience.

She said the Penang facility would supply markets in the United States and Europe.

“The geopolitical stability here and the existing supplier base make Penang the perfect location for our future growth,” she added.

The RM180 million facility is expected to begin operations by 2028.

It is expected to employ about 130 people by the end of 2029, with further expansion planned as operations ramp up.